The mountains and foothills of Los Angeles County are in “extreme drought” conditions, about 36% of the county, explained Pugh. That’s one category shy of hitting the highest level, “exceptional drought,” and three higher than the lowest, “abnormally dry.” The rest of the county is in severe drought.

Rising housing, energy and insurance costs could force Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Legislature to spend more money helping Californians live on a warming planet.

As the narrative of the Southern California wildfires has shifted to identifying the causes behind what could prove to be the most expensive natural disaster in U.S. history, a common refrain has emerged on social media that seeks to dismiss the role scientists say climate change played.

More rain fell Monday on parts of Southern California after causing mudflows over the weekend, helping firefighters but boosting the risk of toxic ash runoff in areas scorched by Los Angeles-area wildfires.

Wildfires in Los Angeles are being driven by climate change, not political mismanagement, and California’s leaders have taken meaningful steps to address the issue, but the sheer scale of

The 2025 wildfires in Southern California underscored the importance of having well-trained firefighting teams and readily available resources for rapid response.

Climate scientists PolitiFact spoke to disagreed with Trump Jr. and said climate change contributed to the Los Angeles fires’ size and destructiveness. Numerous studies have linked human-caused climate change to the western U.S.’ worsening wildfires.

By 2020, as a result of California s recent extreme environmental and social policies the state lost 4 3 million acres to wildfires

I received this letter on the second day of the Palisades Fire, the largest of five fires burning in Southern California: “You stupid republcans (sic) have denied climate change — and now you want to blame democrats? You are an anti intellectual idiot.

Today, the Los Angeles Times is launching Boiling Point, a podcast about climate change and the environment in California and the American West. Yes, that’s the same name as this newsletter. I hope you’ll subscribe and listen.

President Donald Trump continues to slam California Democrats over the state’s water systems and wildfire response — but how much is true?