Singapore Haze Crackdown and Norte Fire Utility Questions — October 20, 2026

Today's news runs from cross-border haze in Southeast Asia to questions about how wildfires start, and how utilities try to stop them, here in the U.S.

Singapore targets three more companies over haze

Singapore's National Environment Agency is sending preventive measure notices to three more Indonesian companies with land in Kalimantan, after indications that smoke from fires there may have reached Singapore, Fortune reports. That brings to 10 the number of companies targeted under the country's Transboundary Haze Pollution Act, after seven Sumatra-linked companies received notices last Friday.

The notices require the companies to put out fires on their land, stop any burning and submit action plans. They are not a finding of legal responsibility, but they allow prosecution and penalties if the requirements for an offense are met. The haze has pushed air pollution to unhealthy and hazardous levels in parts of Southeast Asia and led to school closures.

An outage just before the Norte fire draws scrutiny

San Diego Gas & Electric confirmed an outage on a San Clemente circuit at 11:31 a.m. Friday, two minutes before the Norte fire was reported nearby, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. SDG&E says there is currently no basis to connect its equipment to the ignition, while a wildfire attorney told the Orange County Register the timing is consistent with past utility-caused fires.

The Santa Ana wind-driven fire grew to as large as 570 acres and forced evacuations in Orange County. It was 75% contained by Monday afternoon, and its cause is under investigation by the Orange County Fire Authority.

Xcel says western Colorado outages were not planned shutoffs

Xcel Energy told Garfield County commissioners that recent outages were not intentional Public Safety Power Shutoffs, The Aspen Times reports. Instead, the company said its wildfire safety settings now make equipment more sensitive to hazards when fire weather is high, which can cause longer outages.

Commissioners relayed complaints from businesses between New Castle and Parachute, especially restaurants, that have lost revenue to repeated outages without advance notice, and asked the utility to communicate better.

Fire beetles move into Spokane burn scars

After this year's Spokane Complex fires, thousands of black fire beetles showed up in burned neighborhoods and cleanup zones, FOX Weather reports. The beetles sense heat from fires and lay eggs in freshly burned wood, and near burn scars they can crawl onto gear and skin and occasionally bite.

The same report notes that prescribed burns, which are planned fires set under controlled conditions, can strip away the shaded, damp cover ticks need, making forests less hospitable to them.

Sources

• 'They may think that they can escape scrutiny': Singapore cracks down on Indonesian company smog — Fortune
• A big wildfire and an SDG&E power outage: What happened? — San Diego Union-Tribune
• Xcel Energy explains unplanned power outages as Garfield County businesses raise concerns — The Aspen Times
• Wildfires attract thousands of these beetles while controlled burns kill ticks — FOX Weather

Canairy aggregates publicly reported air-quality and wildfire news and summarizes it in plain English, with links to the original sources. This is educational information, not medical or emergency advice. In a wildfire or air-quality emergency, follow guidance from local authorities.