Latest Wildfire Headlines
All the headlines from our Wildfire Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Update: Canadian Wildfire Rages, Leading to Evacuation of 80,000 People
May 4 2016 // Fire raged unchecked through the Canadian city of Fort McMurray overnight as authorities raced to complete the evacuation of its population of 80,000, fearful that hot, dry winds forecast for Wednesday would further fan...
Average to Below-Average Wildfire Season Expected for Colorado
Apr 27 2016 // Firefighters said Tuesday they expect another average or below-average wildfire season in Colorado in 2016, the third mild year in a row. “That’s always good news,” Gov. John Hickenlooper said after...
Cameras Trained on Mountains around Lake Tahoe Help Wildfire Battle
Apr 22 2016 // A growing network of cameras trained on the mountains around Lake Tahoe is changing the way crews fight Western wildfires by allowing early detection that triggers quicker, cheaper, more tactical suppression than...
Budget Cuts Hamper Ability of Kansas Forest Service to Fight Fires
Apr 19 2016 // The Kansas Forest Service has faced budget constraints as it works to deal with wildfires, including the largest in state history that scorched hundreds of square miles of land last month. Larry Biles, director of the...
Former Southern California Fire Official Gets $704K in Age Discrimination Suit
Apr 19 2016 // A jury has awarded $704,000 to a former division chief for the San Bernardino County Fire Protection District who alleged in a lawsuit he was fired due to his age. The Sun newspaper reported that the 62-year-old George...
Oregon Considers Renewal of Lloyd’s Wildfire Insurance Policy
Apr 18 2016 // Oregon is considering another year of insurance coverage to help pay for catastrophic wildfire seasons. British insurance giant Lloyd’s is offering the state another year of coverage despite three consecutive years...
RIMS 2016: Star Trek Tools, Workers Comp’s Future Help Draw Biggest Crowd in 13 Years
Apr 15 2016 // Workers’ compensation, geopolitical risks, recalls, disaster response, the captive industry and cyber security were among the topics of sessions held throughout the final day of the annual RIMS conference for risk...
Former California Fire Official Wins Age Discrimination Suit, Awarded $704K
Apr 15 2016 // A jury has awarded $704,000 to a former division chief for the San Bernardino County Fire Protection District in California who alleged in a lawsuit he was fired due to his age. The Sun newspaper reported that the...
Oregon Considers Renewal of Lloyd’s Wildfire Insurance Policy
Apr 8 2016 // Oregon is considering another year of insurance coverage to help pay for catastrophic wildfire seasons. British insurance giant Lloyd’s is offering the state another year of coverage despite three consecutive years...
40-Plus Structures Burned in Kansas, Oklahoma Wildfire
Mar 31 2016 // Officials say a wildfire that burned hundreds of square miles of rural land in Oklahoma and Kansas this week destroyed at least 41 structures in both states. Oklahoma Forestry Services spokeswoman Hannah Anderson says...
Officials Raise the Number of Homes Destroyed in Kansas Wildfire
Mar 30 2016 // The biggest wildfire in Kansas history has been largely contained, but authorities said more homes were damaged than originally thought. The Kansas Adjutant General’s Office said that nine Barber County homes were...
New Mexico Weather Creating Dangerous Wildfires Conditions
Mar 30 2016 // Authorities are warning that weather conditions across much of New Mexico are creating conditions ripe for dangerous wildfires. A red flag warning has been issued for portions of southern, central and eastern New Mexico...
Kansas Forest Service: Giant Wildfire Mostly Contained
Mar 29 2016 // The biggest wildfire in Kansas history is largely contained, although firefighting efforts could be hindered by more gusty winds. The Kansas Forest Service says crews were patrolling areas hit by the wildfire that has...
Dry, Windy Weather in North Carolina Increasing Mountain Wildfires
Mar 21 2016 // Windy and dry conditions are causing an increase in the number of wildfires in the North Carolina mountains. Media outlets report that a 60-acre fire near Bearwallow Mountain southeast of Asheville that firefighters have...
Mother Nature More Relaxed in 2015
Mar 2 2016 // This post is part of a series sponsored by CoreLogic. A review of 2015 natural hazard events revealed an overall reduction in property damage for the year. While this does not minimize the local impact of individual events...
Pipeline Companies Ordered to Pay $6.5 M in Damages from Oklahoma Wildfire
Feb 29 2016 // Two pipelines companies have been ordered to pay more than $6.5 million in damages to more than 70 plaintiffs whose property was destroyed in a 2012 wildfire in Oklahoma. Court documents say a Payne County jury ordered IPS...
Oklahoma Wildfire That Burned Homes, Outbuildings Almost Contained
Feb 23 2016 // Oklahoma Forestry Services says firefighters have almost contained a large wildfire east of Okmulgee. Officials say the Pharoah-Nuyaka fire has burned about 34 square miles and is about 60 percent contained. But residents...
California Commissioner, Allstate Agree to Homeowner Rate Reduction
Feb 17 2016 // California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones has reached an agreement with Allstate Insurance Co. and Allstate Indemnity Insurance to reduce the carrier’s homeowner insurance rates statewide by an average of 12.6...
Buildings, Tractors Burn in Louisiana Wildfires
Feb 12 2016 // Louisiana state forestry officials reported another wildfire in Natchitoches Parish, along Louisiana Highway 117 southwest of Natchitoches. Firefighters were dispatched to the scene after a building fire spread into a...
Record Western Wildfires a Contrast in Otherwise Quiet Year for U.S. Natural Disasters
Feb 8 2016 // It was a relatively quiet year for natural disasters – except for those living in the Western United States, according to property data provider CoreLogic, in its annual Natural Hazard Risk Summary and Analysis, released...
