Milder wind helps firefighters in Texas, Okla.

Date: 4/10/2009SEAN MURPHYAssociated Press WriterMIDWEST CITY, Okla. (AP) — Firefighters mopped up hot spots Friday from wind-driven wildfires that injured at least 34 people in western and central Oklahoma and destroyed more than 100 homes.Three…

Oslo police detain man over fire that killed 6

Date: 3/18/2009OSLO (AP) — Norwegian police say they have detained a man on suspicion of arson in an apartment building fire late last year that killed six people and injured 12 in Oslo.The fire ripped through the five-story apartment building…

Investigator: Teen admitted setting 9 Pa. fires

Date: 3/13/2009WEST CHESTER, Pa. (AP) — An investigator says a teenager accused of setting nine fires in an arson-plagued Philadelphia suburb led them to several of the scenes and confessed to the crimes.Nineteen-year-old Roger Leon Barlow…

The Roots of Hope

Yesterday, as I browsed the internet for headlines, I tuned into CNN for some background noise and by the end of the day my mood was as dark as the news. I have made it a habit to not tune into news channels for that very reason. Don’t take…

Police arrest student suspect in Ohio campus fires

Date: 3/6/2009CINCINNATI (AP) — Police say a student at a small Ohio college has been arrested on arson charges after several fires were set on the campus.Police in the Cincinnati suburb of Delhi Township say 18-year-old Jordan Cullen was…

Teen arrested in 7 arsons in fire-ravaged Pa. town

Date: 2/19/2009COATESVILLE, Pa. (AP) — A 19-year-old was charged Thursday with setting at least seven fires in an arson-plagued steel town, including a block-long blaze that displaced dozens of people last month.Roger Leon Barlow Jr., of nearby…

Australian wildfire survivors seek help to rebuild

Date: 2/19/2009By KRISTEN GELINEAUAssociated Press WriterWHITTLESEA, Australia (AP) — The electrician's tools were incinerated, the trucker's rig reduced to a useless, burned shell. The deadly wildfires that swept southern Australia destroyed…

Australian churchgoers mourn wildfire victims

Date: 2/15/2009By TANALEE SMITHAssociated Press WriterWHITTLESEA, Australia (AP) — Australians mourning the lives lost in horrific wildfires last week sought comfort at churches Sunday even as firefighters continued to battle a dozen blazes…

Campfire group won't face charges for Calif. blaze

Date: 2/14/2009SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (AP) — Ten people who built a campfire won't be charged with igniting a wildfire last fall that destroyed more than 200 homes in Santa Barbara and neighboring Montecito, prosecutors said Friday.Santa Barbara…

2 NYC tenants acquitted in firefighter deaths

Date: 2/14/2009By COLLEEN LONGAssociated Press WriterNEW YORK (AP) — Two tenants were acquitted Friday of creating a deadly maze of illegal walls in their apartment building, forcing two firefighters responding to a blaze to jump to their…