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Dennis W. Hallema

Firefighters light backfires as they try to contain the Thomas wildfire which continues to burn in Ojai, California on December 9, 2017. Brutal winds that fueled southern California's firestorm finally began to ease Saturday, giving residents and firefighters hope for respite as the destructive toll of multiple blazes came into focus. / AFP PHOTO / MARK RALSTON (Photo credit should read MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images) (Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images)

Buried in mud: Wildfires threaten North American water supplies

François-Nicolas Robinne, Dennis W. Hallema, Kevin D. Bladon