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CBS News
26-02-2025
- General
- CBS News
Bay Area home building in Wildland Urban Interface areas increases residential wildfire risk
A data analysis by the CBS News Data Team shows a growing number of Bay Area homes are facing increased wildfire risk. In the 1990s, about 917,000 homes in the Bay Area were in Wildland Urban Interface areas, or WUI. Those areas are on land that sits on the edge or within wilderness, putting it at high fire risk. By 2020, there were 1.2 million homes in the WUI, a 27% increase. In some areas, more than 80% of homes are in the WUI: Lake County: 95% Marin County: 88% Mendocino County: 87% Napa County: 84% In terms of growth, Alameda County saw a 40% increase in the number of homes in the WUI (between 1990 and 2020). Contra Costa County saw a 33% increase in the same time frame. In Alameda County, about 1 in 3 homes are in the WUI. In Contra Costa County, about 2 in 3 homes are in the WUI. The city of Brentwood, which has a population of 65,126, saw a 23x increase: 1990: 395 homes in the WUI 2020: 9051 homes in the WUI Andy Bozzo, a battalion chief at the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District, knew well about the WUI even before he was a firefighter. Bozzo, a biology major in college, wrote about "forest succession in a wildfire environment" for his final senior paper. "Most plant species [native to California] are born to burn. They're evolved to burn and live in a fire environment. We also need to evolve to live in a fire environment in California. That can be tough sometimes," Bozzo said. "Now, we're creating these dense neighborhoods and pushing really deep into these wildlands that it's just a fact of life… When you push into wildland, you're going to have higher encounters with things like wildfire." Last June, the Empire Fire sparked near homes in Brentwood, including Rodney Griffin's. Griffin, who moved into his Brentwood home in 2002, said it was the worst fire he'd seen from his home. "We've had fires within a couple of miles of the place that I've often watched from upstairs burn, but none have really quite threaded our home quite like (the Empire Fire)," Griffin said. "We could've had quite a lot of destruction." No homes or structures were destroyed in the Empire Fire, which was fully contained after burning 250 acres. "[These neighborhoods are] beautiful. They have beautiful views. But in the summer time, if a fire gets a good head of steam, it can spot ahead of itself," Bozzo said. "That's what we worry about in neighborhoods like this." Separately, for the first time in 15 years, Cal Fire also released a new fire-risk map for the Bay Area. The red areas on the map represent very high-risk fire zones. Sonoma County saw the biggest increase with that designation, while Oakland saw its fire hazards reduced. Homeowners in the danger zones will eventually have to use more fire-resistant building materials and landscaping and create a five-foot "ember-resistant" zone around their homes. In the Los Angeles wildfires earlier this year, fences fueled the spread of the flames. The state will also require fences that connect to homes to be made out of something other than wood.
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Here's where most unmarried adults live in the U.S.
Love is in the air — but not everyone is in a pair. About 46% of U.S. adults aged 20 and older are unmarried, and some cities have even higher populations of singles, according to a CBS News Data Team analysis of U.S. Census data. For those looking for love, certain areas offer more opportunity. Among U.S. counties with at least 250,000 unmarried residents in this age group, Baltimore, Washington, D.C.; Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania;, Suffolk County, Massachusetts (home to Boston) and New York County (which includes Manhattan) have the highest rates of unmarried adults. The lowest rates of unmarried adults in this age group are found in Collin and Denton counties in Texas; Fairfax County, Virginia; DuPage County, Illinois; and Bergen County, New Jersey — where marriage appears to be more common. Search for your county here: By age group The majority of unmarried people are in their early twenties to thirties, with an increase among those in their mid-sixties too. A Pew Research analysis of similar data found that for the first time in almost 20 years, the share of unpartnered adults in the U.S., married or unmarried, declined in 2023. And while there was not an increase in new marriages, there were slightly fewer divorces. The Pew analysis also found that partnered adults tend to be slightly more financially secure. Some 64% of single adults said they were doing "at least okay" financially, compared with 77% of partnered adults. By sex Among unmarried men aged 20 and older, about 71% have never been married, higher than the 54% of women in the same category. On the other hand, women were more likely to be divorced or widowed. Higher rates of widowhood for women could be attributed to life expectancy. The average life expectancy for men in the U.S. is 74.8 years. For women, it's 80.2 years, according to the Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention. New accusations against Kash Patel as he advances in FBI director confirmation process Kash Patel survives Senate committee vote President Trump wants to dismantle the Department of Education. Here's what would be impacted.
CBS News
14-02-2025
- General
- CBS News
Looking for love? Here's where most unmarried adults live in the U.S.
Love is in the air — but not everyone is in a pair. About 46% of U.S. adults aged 20 and older are unmarried, and some cities have even higher populations of singles, according to a CBS News Data Team analysis of U.S. Census data. For those looking for love, certain areas offer more opportunity. Among U.S. counties with at least 250,000 unmarried residents in this age group, Baltimore, Washington, D.C.; Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania;, Suffolk County, Massachusetts (home to Boston) and New York County (which includes Manhattan) have the highest rates of unmarried adults. The lowest rates of unmarried adults in this age group are found in Collin and Denton counties in Texas; Fairfax County, Virginia; DuPage County, Illinois; and Bergen County, New Jersey — where marriage appears to be more common. Search for your county here: By age group The majority of unmarried people are in their early twenties to thirties, with an increase among those in their mid-sixties too. A Pew Research analysis of similar data found that for the first time in almost 20 years, the share of unpartnered adults in the U.S., married or unmarried, declined in 2023. And while there was not an increase in new marriages, there were slightly fewer divorces. The Pew analysis also found that partnered adults tend to be slightly more financially secure. Some 64% of single adults said they were doing "at least okay" financially, compared with 77% of partnered adults. By sex Among unmarried men aged 20 and older, about 71% have never been married, higher than the 54% of women in the same category. On the other hand, women were more likely to be divorced or widowed. Higher rates of widowhood for women could be attributed to life expectancy. The average life expectancy for men in the U.S. is 74.8 years. For women, it's 80.2 years, according to the Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention.
CBS News
13-02-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Searching for love: How people in different states celebrate Valentine's Day
In the countdown to Valentine's Day, people nationwide have been planning for a day of romance, treats and indulgence to show their love. Here's a look at some of the search trends and what they reveal about how Americans celebrate. 🍫 Chocolate: The sweetest way to say "I love you" Chocolate is a special treat any time of the year and is definitely a hallmark of the most romantic day of the year. "Chocolate fondue" and "chocolate covered strawberries" are the top trending recipes over the past day in the U.S., according to Google Search Trends data. The CBS Data team looked at Yelp data on chocolate shops across the country. Even though it's one of the smaller states, Hawaii is the state with the highest rate per capita, with 22 chocolate shops per million people. 🌹 Flowers or chocolate 🍫 What's more classic for V-Day than chocolates and flowers? They're both popular this time of year, but one of them is being searched for more than the other 24 hours before the big day. According to a CBS News Data Team analysis of Google Trends data, the U.S. is searching more for "flowers" than "chocolate" the day before Valentine's Day 2025. It turns out that the U.S. is also searching for "flower delivery" more than "chocolate-covered fruit" on Valentine's Day eve. Strawberries are the quintessential chocolate covered fruit, and Google search interest in "how to make chocolate covered strawberries" and "how to store chocolate covered strawberries" spikes annually during Valentine's Day week. 🍽️ Table for two According to Yelp reservation data, 61% of diners made reservations for Valentine's Day within the week leading up to it. However, another 21% waited to make their reservations at the last minute. 🫶🏼 Celebrating singles "Yelp users are seeking out restaurants that cater to solo diners," according to Yelp. From January 2024 to January 2025, Yelp searches for "solo dining" increased 14% and searches for "restaurants with bar seating" increased 21%. Google Trends data reflects searchers looking forward to a day to celebrate themselves and their single life. Search interest in "Single's Day" — an event that got its start in China and became a major shopping occasion — spikes annually the week of the holiday, in November, in the U.S. However, a smaller spike in searches occurs the week of Valentine's Day.
