Suspect hit with arson charges in Northern California fire that destroyed 26 homes and businesses
Butte County District Attorney’s Office
(OROVILLE, Calif.) — A 26-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of starting a massive Northern California wildfire in July that destroyed 26 homes and businesses and prompted the evacuation of nearly 30,000 people, officials said.
Spencer Grant Anderson of Oroville, California, was arraigned on Monday on charges of arson of an inhabited structure, arson of forest land and arson causing multiple structures to burn, according to the Butte County District Attorney’s Office.
Anderson was ordered to return to court on Wednesday after he has a chance to speak to his court-appointed attorney, prosecutors said.
“It was a long-term investigation. There are a lot of moving parts. Right now it’s an accusation and everybody has a right to a trial,” Anderson’s attorney, Larry Pilgrim, told ABC News on Tuesday as he waited at the Butte County Jail to speak to his client for the first time.
Pilgrim said he plans to ask for a continuance in the case to allow him to review the evidence. He said Anderson will enter a plea at a later date.
Investigators from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) identified Anderson as a possible suspect a day after the Thompson Fire ignited near the town of Oroville on July 2, Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey said at a news conference on Monday.
“For 50 days, Cal Fire devoted four to six investigators per day, brought in from around the state, to continuously watch Anderson as other investigators meticulously built the case,” Ramsey said. “If Anderson had chosen to light another fire, we were confident the surveillance personnel would be able to detect and stop the fire before it could get out of control.”
Anderson was taken into custody on Aug. 22 when Cal Fire investigators executed search warrants and “located evidence further implicating Anderson in starting the Thompson fire,” prosecutors said in a statement without elaborating on the evidence.
Ramsey said that on the day the fire was ignited, Cal Fire investigators pinpointed the area where the fire started near the intersection of Cherokee and Thompson Flat roads in a rural area northeast of Oroville and quickly determined the “fire was caused by an intentional human act.”
“Arson by its very terms is a very difficult crime to solve because it burns up the evidence,” Ramsey said, praising the work of investigators on the case.
Ramsey said several 911 callers and witnesses in the area at the time the fire started reported seeing a blue Toyota driving in the area and investigators determined the fire was most likely started by a flaming object thrown from the Toyota as it drove southbound on Cherokee Road.
Using automatic license plate readers in the area, investigators were able to identify the Toyota and trace it to Anderson, Ramsey said.
“Anderson was arrested and questioned. He admitted that on the morning of the fire, he purchased fireworks from a firework stand in Oroville, then went up to Cherokee Road to ‘test one’ by throwing it out his car window,” prosecutors said in the statement.
In addition to destroying 26 structures, including 13 homes, the Thompson Fire damaged eight structures and burned 3,789 acres before it was fully contained on July 8, according to Cal Fire. Two firefighters were injured battling the blaze, Cal Fire said.
If convicted of the charges, Anderson faces a maximum sentence of 21 years in prison, according to prosecutors. Anderson has been ordered to be held without bail at the Butte County Jail.
The Thompson Fire was the second wildfire deliberately set in Butte County in July. On July 24, the Park Fire was deliberately started in Bidwell Park near Chico and spread to more than 429,000 acres across Butte, Tehama, Shasta and Plumas counties.
Ronnie Dean Stout II, 42, was arrested on a felony count of arson of an inhabited structure or property, according to the Butte County District Attorney’s Office. Stout has pleaded not guilty.
Stout was allegedly spotted pushing a car that was on fire down a gully called “Alligator Hole” in Bidwell Park, igniting the Park Fire, now the fourth largest wildfire in California history, according to prosecutors.
(NEW YORK) — Tropical Storm Debby strengthened to a Category 1 hurricane as it approached Florida on Monday morning, with sustained winds up to 80 mph. Winds of 74-95 mph had been forecast in areas under a Hurricane Warning in the Big Bend region.
Here’s how the news is developing:
Debby approaches landfall with 80 mph winds
Hurricane Debby is “very near” landfall along Florida’s Gulf Coast, the National Hurricane Center said at 5 a.m. ET.
“Expected to bring life-threatening storm surge in portions of Florida and major flooding in the southeastern United States,” the center said in an update.
The Category 1 storm had maximum sustained winds of an about 80 mph as it approached Big Bend, a northern area near the Panhandle, the center said.
Debby strengthens, with maximum sustained winds up to 80 mph
Hurricane Debby continued to strengthen, with maximum sustained winds rising to 80 mph, making it a Category 1 hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center.
More than 10 inches of rain fell on the west coast of Florida, around the Tampa Bay area, where water rescues have been on going near Clearwater. Significant flooding also has been reported in Fort Myers area.
Storm surge has been rising quickly now along the Big Bend area in Florida, from Cedar Key to Keaton Beach, where up to 10 feet of Gulf water could inundate the coastline. The storm is forecast to make landfall in that area on Monday morning.
Coast Guard rescues two adrift in sailboat off Florida coast
Two people were rescued Sunday from a boat that was adrift in about 20-foot seas off the coast of Boca Grande, Florida, the U.S. Coast Guard said.
The boaters were airlifted from their 34-foot sailboat after the vessel lost its sail about 73 miles off shore, the guard said.
The sailboat had been on course for Tarpon Springs from Key West, officials said. A friend of the boaters contacted the Coast Guard at about 5 p.m. Saturday, telling officials they had missed their check-in.
“We received an updated satellite position from the boaters’ friend, which led to them being successfully located,” Lt. Cmdr. Christopher Hooper, a search and rescue mission coordinator, said in a statement.
The boaters were rescued by a crew on an Air Station Clearwater MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter at about 11 a.m. on Sunday, the Coast Guard said. They had been adrift in seas that were between 15 and 20 feet, with wind speeds at about 50 knots. Visibility was low.
The names of the people on the boat were not released.
Debby strengthens into a hurricane
The National Hurricane Center has upgraded Tropical Storm Debby to a Category 1 hurricane with winds of 75 mph.
The forecast is still on track for more strengthening overnight as Debby feeds off the warm water in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. Water temperatures running 3 to 5 degrees above average are providing plenty of fuel for this storm to intensify before landfall, which will happen around 7 a.m. ET along the Big Bend region of Florida.
Tropical Storm Debby nearing hurricane strength at 70 mph
While still a tropical storm, Debby is nearing hurricane strength, producing maximum sustained wind speeds up to 70 mph.
Debby will continue to intensify rapidly overnight as it travels northward over the Gulf’s warm waters. It is forecast to become a hurricane tonight. It is expected to strengthen to at least a strong Category 1 hurricane before making landfall along Florida’s Big Bend region Monday morning (around 7 a.m. ET), producing sustained wind speeds near 85 mph and wind gusts reaching over 100 mph possible.
Located about 90 miles southwest of Cedar Key, Florida, the storm continues to impact the Florida Gulf Coast with heavy rainfall, storm surge, powerful winds and even spin-up tornadoes.
A reported wind gust of 56 mph was reported in St. Petersburg, with two tornadoes reported in central Florida.
A 60-mph wind gust was also reported near Sarasota, Florida.
Numerous reports of flooding from heavy rainfall and surges have also been submitted up Florida’s Gulf Coast.
The Tornado Watch covering much of northern and central Florida and southern Georgia has been extended until 6 a.m. ET on Monday.
Once Debby moves over land, it will weaken. However, the lack of a steering current will cause the storm to slow down considerably. While its exact track remains questionable, model guidance suggests the storm will drift over the Atlantic or Southeast coastline late Monday night into Tuesday before meandering back over Georgia and the Carolinas. Interaction with the Atlantic could reenergize Debby, but that will greatly depend on the storm’s path.
Even though Debby’s track and timing remain uncertain later this week, there is high confidence that it will bring historic rainfall and significant flooding across portions of the Southeast.
Rainfall ranging between 6 to 12 inches is possible from Florida’s Big Bend region through southeastern Georgia and into the Carolinas. Parts of coastal Georgia and South Carolina will be in the bullseye for the heaviest rainfall. There, widespread totals between 10 to 20 inches are possible, with some places even seeing up to 30 inches locally. Because of this, significant urban and river flooding is anticipated.
Rainfall aside, hurricane and tropical storm force winds will continue to whip across Florida and will likely intensify Sunday night into Monday as the storm moves closer to the coast — with areas just south and east of the storm’s eyewall seeing the strongest gusts early Monday morning.
Storm surge will also worsen along Florida’s northern and central Gulf coast tonight into Monday morning, with the highest surge expected between Suwannee River and Ochlockonee River (6 to 10 feet).
All tropical alerts remain unchanged from the last update.
Tropical Storm Debby on track to become a hurricane overnight
As of 5 p.m. ET on Sunday, Tropical Storm Debby still has winds of 65 mph and is forecast to undergo rapid intensification into a hurricane overnight, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Debby is expected to make landfall as a hurricane in Florida’s Big Bend region on Monday morning around 7 a.m.
Rain is expected to be the most impactful element from this storm, affecting a wide area over an extended period of time.
“Across portions of southeast Georgia and South Carolina, 10 to 20 inches of rainfall, with local amounts to 30 inches, are expected through Friday morning,” the National Hurricane Center said. “This potentially historic rainfall will likely result in areas of catastrophic flooding.”
Evacuations ordered in Alachua County, Florida, as Debby set to make landfall
An evacuation order was issued Sunday for residents of Alachua County, Florida, residing in mobile homes, manufactured homes and recreational vehicles ahead of the arrival of Debby, which is forecast to be a hurricane when it makes landfall on Monday.
People living in areas close to rivers and lakes, and low-lying areas that tend to flood in Alachua County are also encouraged to evacuate, according to a statement issued by county officials.
Gainesville is the largest city in Alachua County.
“We encourage residents affected to find alternative housing with friends, family or short-term rentals,” according to the county’s statement.
Alachua County is opening three shelters for residents in need.
Tornado watch issued as Debby runs parallel to Florida’s Gulf Coast
A tornado watch was issued Sunday afternoon by the National Weather Service as Tropical Storm Debbie moved northward in the Gulf of Mexico parallel to Florida’s Gulf Coast.
At 2 p.m. Sunday, the National Hurricane Center said Debby was still a tropical storm with winds of 65 mph and forecasted to bring severe weather, including heavy rain, to coastal communities Sunday afternoon.
A tornado watch is in effect for much of Florida through Sunday evening.
Debby is expected to become a hurricane Sunday evening and will likely make landfall sometime between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. Monday in the Big Bend area of Florida’s Panhandle.
Once Debby makes landfall, the storm is expected to slow down and essentially stall over the Southeast, dropping potentially historic amounts of rainfall as it moves into Georgia and South Carolina.
A hurricane warning is in effect for the west coast of Florida from the Ochlockonee River southwest of Tallahassee to the Suwannee River northwest of Gainesville.
More than 1,600 flights canceled due to Debby and Northeast thunderstorms
Tropical Storm Debby and thunderstorms in the Northeast were causing airlines to cancel or delay flights on Sunday.
American Airlines said it canceled 601 flights, or about 16% of its flights, on Sunday, the most of any airline.
Debby, now a tropical storm in the Gulf of Mexico, is expected to make landfall around the Big Bend area of the Florida Panhandle on Monday morning as a Category 1 hurricane.
Also causing delays and cancellations were severe thunderstorms moving up the East Coast. Parts of the mid-Atlantic states are under a severe thunderstorm watch until 9 p.m. ET Sunday, including the cities of Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York City.
The most flights canceled on Sunday were at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, where 214 flights were canceled and another 172 were delayed, according to FlightAware.
In New York City, LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy international airports reported a combined 363 flights canceled and 258 delayed on Sunday.
Miami International Airport reported 209 canceled flights and 151 delayed fights. Airports in Orlando, Tampa, Philadelphia, Newark, Washington, D.C., and Dallas-Fort Worth all reported more than 100 flight cancellations on Sunday.
Ten million people under tropical storm alert on Florida’s Gulf Coast
About 10 million people along Florida’s west coast and up through Georgia and South and North Carolina were under a tropical storm alert Sunday as Debby took aim at the area and is forecast to make landfall in the Panhandle region on Monday.
Debby, now a tropical storm in the Gulf of Mexico about 190 miles southwest of Tampa, is expected to make landfall sometime between 7 and 8 a.m. in Big Bend on the Florida Panhandle as a Category 1 hurricane, state emergency officials said.
Debby is expected to create a storm surge of 4 to 7 feet in Cedar Key and Crystal River on the Florida west coast and a 2- to 5-foot storm surge farther south in Tampa and Sarasota.
The storm is forecast to move into the cities of Tallahassee and Jacksonville, bringing up to 20 inches of rain to some parts, before causing potential flooding in Georgia and the Carolinas on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
National Guard put on alert for search and rescue: DeSantis
Members of the Florida National Guard have been advised to be prepared to conduct search-and-rescue missions once Tropical Storm Debby makes landfall on Monday, according to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Widespread flooding is expected for the Florida Panhandle region, particularly in the Big Bend area where Debby is expected to make landfall Monday morning as a category 1 hurricane, DeSantis said during a news conference Sunday morning.
DeSantis said the Florida National Guard and the state’s Emergency Response Team are prepared to conduct search-and-rescue and provide humanitarian assistance.
“The Florida National Guard is standing by with 3,000 service members ready to assist the state Emergency Response Team, which includes search-and-rescue, route clearance, commodity distribution and protection of critical infrastructure,” DeSantis said.
The governor said at least 12 swift boat crews and flat-bottom jon boat crews are also standing by to help with rescues.
He said that more than 30,000 bottles of water, more than 160,000 meals and nearly 14,000 tarps have been pre-staged in parts of Florida that are expected to be hit hard by the storm.
DeSantis said Florida utility companies have notified up to 17,000 linemen to be ready to spring into action once it is safe to repair any damage.
Flooding forecast as Debby expected to bring up to 20 inches of rain
Florida residents in the Big Bend region of the Panhandle were warned Sunday that Debby is going to bring “catastrophic rain to the area” that will cause flooding and power outages.
Kevin Guthrie, director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management, said during a news conference on Sunday that once the Debby makes landfall as a possible Category 1 hurricane on Monday morning, winds will subside quickly, but the slow-moving storm will produce an abundance of rain.
“We’re going to be in a catastrophic rain situation where we have situations in Florida that will receive 15, maybe as high as 20 inches of rain,” Guthrie said.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told residents who are in the path of the storm to expect widespread power outages.
“It’s possible that you could have serious intensification between now and landfall. It could get up to 85, 90 and 95 mph sustained winds. That is absolutely possible, particularly in parts of the state like here in Tallahassee. There’s going to be a lot of trees that are going to fall down and you’re going to have debris. You are going to have power interruptions,” the governor said.
Gov. DeSantis advises residents to make final preparations for Debby
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis advised residents of the state’s Panhandle region on Sunday that they should be finalizing preparations for when Tropical Storm Debby makes its anticipated landfall Monday morning as a Category 1 hurricane.
“Now this is a storm that is potentially dangerous. Residents should be finalizing all of their preparations now,” DeSantis said during a news conference at the state’s Emergency Operation Center in Tallahassee.
DeSantis said Tropical Storm Debby was in the Gulf of Mexico about 190 miles southwest of Tampa as of Sunday morning with sustained winds of about 50 mph.
“But those are expected to increase,” DeSantis said. “Tropical Storm Debby is likely to become a Category 1 hurricane before making landfall in the Big Bend region of Florida.”
He said the storm was on a similar track taken by Hurricane Idalia in 2023. Idalia made landfall in Big Bend on Aug. 30, 2023, as a Category 3 hurricane and caused a devastating storm surge of 7 to 12 feet across the coastal Big Bend region in Levy, Dixie and Taylor counties.
“This storm is a similar track,” DeSantis said. “It may be a tick to the west of that. It very well may have greater impacts here in the Tallahassee region than Hurricane Idalia did. Once it crosses landfall and enters the Florida Panhandle/Big Bend Region, wherever it does, it’s going to move very slowly across northern Florida and southeast Georgia.”
Community members hold hands in a prayer circle at a ‘Lahaina Strong’ gathering on Oct. 6, 2023 in Lahaina, Hawaii. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — The islands of Hawaii have been sold to travelers as a dream destination paradise, but the Maui wildfires pulled back the curtain on a complicated history and reality that few tourists see.
In August 2023, wildfires on the island left 102 people dead and more than 2,000 properties destroyed, displacing more than 7,000 residents. It was the deadliest wildfire in modern U.S. history.
The destruction forced open deep wounds in the community about housing, water rights and tourism.
Within days of the fire, a new generation of leaders emerged to fight for their town, their community, and ultimately a more equitable future for all Hawaii. They call themselves Lahaina Strong.
“We turned our passion and aloha for our place into law that can protect and reshape this place through the lens of our people,” said Lahaina Strong organizer Pā’ele Kiakona.
Organizer Courtney Lazo was left without a home following the disaster; she worked to save the house five generations of her family had lived in by hosing it down but ultimately it was lost.
Kiakona drove around downed power lines and through smoke to save his grandmother from the growing blaze.
Jordan Ruidas, another organizer, is a young mother thrust into local community organizing after the tragedy.
The wildfires took lives, homes, businesses, and landmarks both historic and personal to the people of Lahaina.
The deadly blaze forced the community into action, while highlighting the need for change.
“We do have the unique opportunity where we can build back and we can build back better,” Lazo said.
“I’ll fight tooth and nail, fighting to protect our environment, our water, our people – all of those things that would have helped prevent the fire,” Kiakona added in a separate interview.
The Lahaina fire accelerated an ongoing exodus of Hawaiian and local families that has been happening for decades, due to the high cost of living and lack of affordable housing.
“This beautiful Hawaii that everybody comes to see and partake in will no longer be here if Hawaiians are not here and local people are not here,” Ruidas said.
The U.S. Census found in 2020 that more Native Hawaiians lived outside of the state than inside.
“If we continue to be displaced outside of our home, then what does that mean for Hawaii?” Noah Dolim, assistant professor of history at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, told ABC News.
After the fires, protests on concerns about housing and cultural preservation — at local and state meetings and on public beaches — helped result in substantial legislative action. Despite lacking political backgrounds, the young activists taught themselves how to lobby for bills and have been met with much success.
The group played a key role in advocating for Gov. Josh Green to sign a bill into law on May 3, 2024 that gave counties more authority to regulate short-term vacation rentals amid the ongoing state housing crisis and aftermath of the wildfires.
Before the fire, almost half of the dwellings in West Maui were used solely as short-term vacation rentals, according to the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement. This means they were rented out to tourists by owners who may charge thousands a month and leaving fewer options for long-term renters.
“To actually have the entire community across the state pushing for this change, it’s almost like an exhale,” said Lazo.
The impact will be felt beyond the coasts of Lahaina — the law applies to the entirety of the Hawaiian Islands.
“Every single island has issues with short-term rentals,” said Kiakona. “This was an issue that has been going on way too long. Those who just look at Hawaii as a money-making vehicle rather than people’s homes.”
Members of Lahaina Strong feel this is just the beginning of their movement — they remain committed to the work necessary to regenerate Lahaina, reforest the land, and to fight for change on such issues as overtourism and for increased water rights.
(WASHINGTON) — The Justice Department on Monday charged two California individuals who were alleged leaders of a white supremacist group that wanted to ignite a race war in the United States and allegedly plotted to kill “high value” targets and incite its followers to carry out terror attacks around the globe.
Dallas Humber and Matthew Allison allegedly became leaders of a group that deemed itself “Terrorgram” and was formed on the encrypted social media site.
The two were charged with a host of federal crimes including solicitation of the killing of a federal official, doxing federal officials and making interstate threats.
“The defendant’s goal, the indictment charges, was to ignite a race war, accelerate the collapse of what they viewed as an irreparably corrupt government and bring about a white ethno state. As the indictment lays out, defendants use the internet platform Telegram to post messages promoting their white supremacist accelerationism,” Kristen Clarke, the DOJ’s head of its Civil Rights Division, said during a press conference Monday.
The indictment alleges that the group “solicited terrorist attacks” including on alleged “enemies,” on government infrastructure, and on “high value” targets such as politicians and government figures.
“The List,” according to the indictment, includes U.S. senators, federal judges, U.S. attorneys and local officials.
When disseminating the so-called list, Allision allegedly included comments like “take action now” and “do your part.”
In at least three separate instances detailed by prosecutors in the indictment, users of the group have allegedly moved forward in carrying out violent attacks inspired by the group chat.
One user was a 19-year-old from Slovakia who killed two people at an LGBT bar in Bratislava before killing himself, according to the DOJ. The indictment alleges that the attacker sent a manifesto directly to Humber, which Humber later purportedly narrated and turned into an audiobook.
Both Humber and Allison later allegedly took credit for the attack and celebrated the attacker as the group’s “first Saint,” according to the indictment.
A separate case highlighted in the indictment involved the arrest in July of 18-year-old Andrew Taskhistov of New Jersey who was allegedly incited to plot an attack on an energy facility through his membership in the group. A third case highlighted in the indictment involved an 18-year-old from Turkey who allegedly livestreamed himself stabbing five people outside a mosque and later shared multiple publications from the group.
Part of the group’s alleged strategy was to target critical infrastructure, according to the DOJ.
Humber and Allison also allegedly created a documentary that celebrated racist incidents around the country from 1968 on, according to the indictment.
The pair also allegedly stressed the need to be covert about their operations and, according to the indictment.
No attorney information for Humber or Allison was immediately available.
