Latest Wildfire Headlines

All the headlines from our Wildfire Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Climate Change, Wildfire Risk and State Farm’s California Decision

Jun 1 2023 // Several reasons were given within State Farm’s announcement last week the carrier was no longer writing new personal or business property/casualty policies in California – including a challenging reinsurance...

Wildfire on Canada’s Atlantic Coast Prompts Evacuation of 16,000, Damages Properties

Jun 1 2023 // A wildfire on Canada’s Atlantic coast has damaged about 200 houses and other structures and prompted the evacuation of 16,000 people, many of whom were eager to return Tuesday to see whether homes and pets had...

California Overtime Law Threatens Use of Grazing Goats to Prevent Wildfires

May 31 2023 // Hundreds of goats munch on long blades of yellow grass on a hillside next to a sprawling townhouse complex. They were hired to clear vegetation that could fuel wildfires as temperatures rise this summer. These voracious...

California Department of Insurance Bans Sender of Misleading Wildfire Mailers

May 26 2023 // A California Department of Insurance investigation into misleading mailers on insurance claims following wildfires led to a ban of public adjuster and California Recovery Group owner Argen Youssefi of Glendale. The...

No Respite for Wildfire-Hit Alberta as Conditions Set to Worsen

May 19 2023 // Abnormally hot and dry weather is set to return to Alberta on Thursday after a couple of cooler days helped calm wildfires that have forced thousands of evacuations and disrupted production in Canada’s main oil-rich...

Washington’s Proposed Wildfire Smoke Designed to Protect Workers from Dangers

May 19 2023 // The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries filed proposed permanent wildfire smoke rules and launched a formal process for public input designed to protect people who work outdoor jobs like construction,...

New Mexico Officials Say FEMA Delays Create Mistrust Among Wildfire Victims

May 12 2023 // Members of New Mexico’s congressional delegation are criticizing federal emergency managers for missing deadlines as residents seek recovery assistance following the largest wildfire in the state’s recorded...

Update: Wildfires Rage Across Canada’s Gas Heartland, Cutting Production

May 8 2023 // Wildfires raging across western Canada forced the evacuation of 30,000 residents and cut at least 234,000 barrels a day of oil and gas production as companies shut down wells and pipelines. A total of 100 blazes were...

Lawmakers from Western States Want More Done to Confront Wildfire Crisis

May 2 2023 // Lawmakers from several western states want the U.S. Forest Service to do more to address a wildfire crisis that they say will surely destroy more landscapes, communities and livelihoods as long-term drought persists around...

Wildfires in Alaska? Climate Change Sparks Disaster Fears

May 1 2023 // Research on a flat spot for air evacuations. Talk of old-style civil defense sirens to warn of fast-moving wildfires. Hundreds of urban firefighters training in wildland firefighting techniques while snow still blankets...

$1.6B Trial Starts Against Utility Over Fatal 2020 Oregon Wildfires

Apr 28 2023 // PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – A trial connected to a $1.6 billion class action lawsuit against utility PacifiCorp over the catastrophic Labor Day 2020 wildfires in Oregon started Tuesday in Portland. The fires in 2020 killed...

New Mexicans Affected by Last Year’s Wildfire Get FEMA Aid

Apr 27 2023 // The Federal Emergency Management Agency Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Claims Office, charged with administering nearly $4 billion in emergency financial aid for survivors of last year’s record-breaking wildfire in New...

Wisconsin Wildfire Forces Evacuations

Apr 14 2023 // NECEDAH, Wis. (AP) – A wildfire led to evacuations Wednesday in Juneau County, Wisconsin authorities said Wednesday. The fire began in Necedah, about 90 miles north of Madison, and had spread to roughly 100 acres,...

Wildfire Burns Nearly 700 Acres in Southeast Nebraska

Apr 12 2023 // UNION, Neb. (AP) – Overnight rain helped firefighters get control of two wildfires Monday in southeast Nebraska near the Missouri River. Nebraska officials said after Gov. Jim Pillen surveyed the damage that the fire...

AccuWeather: Storms May Have Delayed California’s Wildfire Season

Apr 12 2023 // The massive rainfall and snow California received this winter will likely delay the upcoming wildfire season for the state – though all that moisture is unlikely to curtail it much if at all, a wildfire report out today...

Wildfire Threat Grows as Florida Drought Worsens

Apr 11 2023 // The threat of wildfires is growing in Florida over the coming weeks as more than half the state is experiencing severe to extreme drought conditions likely to persist until rainy season resumes around mid-May, state and...

Amwins Launches Excess Wildfire Product for California Residential Properties

Apr 4 2023 // Amwins Access launched its new Excess Wildfire Product, which is intended to complement a self-insured retention plan or the California FAIR plan or a similar plan. The product is written in partnership with PartnerRe...

New Mexico and Arizona Officials Warn of Wildfire Risk as Southwest Dries out

Apr 3 2023 // Snowcapped mountains in the Southwestern U.S. signal a possible delayed start to the wildfire season for some higher elevations, but officials in New Mexico and Arizona warned that dry, windy conditions in other areas are...

$1.5M for California Homeowners Overcharged Under Wildfire Risk Score

Mar 29 2023 // Kemper Independence Insurance Co. has issued more than $1.5 million in refunds to thousands of California homeowners after the California Department of Insurance found the carrier overcharged policyholders for wildfire...

Long-Term Drought in Spain Expected to Bring More Heatwaves, Wildfires

Mar 23 2023 // MADRID (AP) – Spain has officially entered a period of long-term drought, owing to high temperatures and low rainfall over the past three years, and likely faces another year of heatwaves and forest fires. The...