American Photography 38 Winners

Wildfire Recovery

Wildfire Recovery. September 2021. Smoke fills the air from wildfires throughout the west as Armando Almanza makes his way back to his mobile home in the newest Federal Emergency Management Agency development for Almeda Fire victims in Phoenix, Ore., on Sunday, Sept., 5, 2021. Almanza’s partner Stephanie Bartz said it has been a lifesaver to move into the FEMA housing this week because her four-person family had been squeezed into a one-bedroom rental for $900 a month since last winter after loosing their trailer in the Almeda fire. “It would be nice if families got a chance to purchase the homes, because there is nothing else available here,” she said, expressing worries about what would happen when their time in the FEMA housing runs out. “I know things are tight everywhere, but we need help too, we need a stable place.”

Heat Wave

Valerie Plummer plays in the Willamette River with her family at Sellwood Riverfront Park in Portland, Oregon on June 27, 2021. Heat Wave. June 2021. For The Washington Post - More than 100 deaths were reported from heat-related causes after a record breaking heat wave spanned throughout the Pacific Northwest.