The smell of smoke is overpowering in some parts of the Tampa Bay area this morning. Three brush fires that burned a total of more than 1,000 acres Thursday in Polk County are under control, but firefighters are monitoring them for hot spots, authorities say. They say any change in wind conditions could cause the flames to flare up again. ...more

February 27, 2009

Firefighters in three counties are battling at least six brush fires that sparked today in the Tampa Bay area. ...more

February 26, 2009

The frail and elderly were put aboard buses Wednesday and authorities warned 1 million others to flee inland as Hurricane Ike steamed toward a swath of the Texas coast that includes the nation's largest concentration of refineries and chemical plants. ...more

September 11, 2008

County administrator Pat Bean says the state of emergency in Hillsborough has been lifted and the mandatory evacuations for mobile homes and voluntary evacuations of low-lying areas has been cancelled. "We've been blessed again," she says. "We are just as pleased as we can be." ...more

August 19, 2008

The dark, filthy water that flooded Iowa's second-largest city finally started to recede Saturday after forcing 24,000 people to flee, but those who remained were urged to cut back on showering and flushing to save the last of their unspoiled drinking water. ...more

June 15, 2008