wildfires

WENATCHEE, Wash. (AP) — The central Washington city of Wenatchee is considering a ban on fireworks after dozens of homes were destroyed in last summer's wildfires. KOMO-TV reports that the proposed ban would prohibit the possession, sale and use of fireworks...

Fire forecasters say Hawaii, Alaska and the Southwest will face an increased threat of wildfires this summer. The National Interagency Fire Center released its outlook for the spring and summer on Sunday. It says most of the country will face normal or below-normal wildfire problems...

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack is in Cuba leading a delegation of U.S. government officials there through Saturday. Vilsack said the trip would "be an opportunity to support the administration’s commitment to normalizing relations and empowering the Cuban people through bilateral agricultural engagement...

President Obama has directed more federal funding to help fight wildfires. Another $250 million is in addition to $450 million already transferred from different parts of the federal budget earlier this year to go toward fighting such disasters...

Japan is lifting some of its bans on imports of live poultry and poultry meat from the United States. The bans were put in place earlier this year due to the U.S. outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza. Imports from Oregon, Washington, Idaho, California, Kansas, Arkansas, Montana and Indiana as well as British Columbia can resume...

OKANOGAN (AP) — Help is coming from Down Under to help fight the Okanogan Complex of wildfires, the largest in Washington history. Sixteen of the Australian firefighters who have arrived in the United States to help battle Western blazes will be assigned to the Okanogan Complex...

TWISP (AP) — Fire officials in Washington state say a complex of wildfires burning in north-central Washington is about 10 percent contained. Spokesman Dan Omdal says containment does not mean the fire has stopped burning. It means it has run out of fuel to burn in that area, either because it has hit a man-made fire line, or a retardant drop or a road or lake...

TWISP (AP) — A second of the four firefighters injured in a wildfire on Wednesday has been transferred to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, the Northwest's major burn center. Harborview spokeswoman Susan Gregg said Saturday that the firefighter was transferred Friday night and is listed in satisfactory condition...

OMAK (AP) — Washington officials say more than 3,000 people have called and emailed in response to the state's request for volunteer help with wildfires. The bad fire season has been severely straining resources. The Department of Natural Resources on Friday opened centers in Omak and Colville to coordinate offers of help from trained, qualified volunteer firefighters and from people who have and

The Trans-Pacific Partnership remains doable but increasingly harder as the U.S. Presidential election moves closer. Australian Federal Trade and Investment Minister Andrew Robb said “the last few yards are very difficult.” Robb spoke last week saying the remaining five percent of the deal is proving to be the toughest...