Latest Wildfire Headlines
All the headlines from our Wildfire Topic Page, ordered by recency.
New Mexico Governor Declares Emergency Amid Growing Wildfire
Jun 16 2016 // A wildfire burning in central New Mexico grew to more than three square miles late Wednesday, sending up a towering plume of smoke that swelled as afternoon temperatures soared and eventually blanketed the state’s...
Global Disasters During May to Cost Insurers at Least $7B: Aon Report
Jun 9 2016 // Global disasters led to at least $7 billion in claims during May as insurers aid the recovery process following wildfires, floods, and storms, according to Impact Forecasting, Aon Benfield’s catastrophe model...
Canada ‘Needs to Do More’ to Mitigate Climate Disasters Such as Wildfires, Flood
Jun 1 2016 // The Canadian government needs to do more to mitigate climate disasters such as floods and wildfires, a top green watchdog said on Tuesday as the Alberta town of Fort McMurray struggled to recover from a huge...
Canada’s Oil Sands Facilities Prepare to Restart as Wildfires Begin to Slow
May 25 2016 // All of the Canadian oil-sands facilities that workers fled last week as a wildfire spread are being allowed to prepare for restart as cool, humid weather has helped contain the inferno. Alberta lifted mandatory evacuation...
Climate Change Will Raise the Cost of Canada’s Natural Disasters: Insurers
May 19 2016 // Canada will have to set aside more money to deal with natural disasters like wildfires, storms and floods as climate change starts to bite, the head of the country’s property insurance industry group said on...
Alberta Wildfires Could Cost $7B with Minimal Insurer Credit Hit: Ratings Agencies
May 17 2016 // The Fort McMurray wildfires, which have been raging through northern Alberta, Canada since May 1, are likely to be the costliest natural disaster in Canadian history, according to recent reports issued by catastrophe...
Alberta Wildfires Spread North, Threatening Oil Sands Facilities, Workers’ Camps
May 17 2016 // Wildfires raging across northern Alberta for more than two weeks have come to within a kilometer of an Enbridge Inc. oil-sands transportation terminal as warm weather and wind spread the flames, while workers were...
Alberta Wildfires Spare Almost 90% of Fort McMurray, Canada’s Energy Hub
May 10 2016 // The massive wildfires that swept through Canada’s energy hub of Fort McMurray left almost 90 percent of the city intact, including most of the downtown core, while completely leveling some neighborhoods. “This...
Alberta Wildfires Could Hit Canada Economy Harder than Hurricane Katrina in US
May 10 2016 // Intact Financial Corp. may post insured losses of as much as C$1.1 billion ($850 million) from the wildfires in Alberta, which could dent the Canadian economy harder than Hurricane Katrina hit the U.S. Intact,...
Costly Alberta Wildfires to Hit Q2 Results; Insurers Are Resilient: Ratings Reports
May 9 2016 // While the wildfires raging through northern Alberta and the city of Fort McMurray could bring one of the largest catastrophe losses in Canadian history, property insurers are resilient, according to A.M. Best and...
Drones Will Be Used to Investigate Cause of Alberta Wildfires
May 9 2016 // Fire-ravaged Alberta will use drones to investigate the cause of a huge blaze that has scorched the Canadian province and displaced some 88,000 people. Elevated Robotic Services, which has also deployed drones for mining...
Alberta Wildfires Set to Veer from Oil Sands Operations, Spreading More Slowly
May 9 2016 // Wildfires raging through Alberta are set to move away from the main oil-sands facilities north of Fort McMurray after knocking out an estimated 1 million barrels of production from Canada’s energy hub. A cold front...
Alberta Wildfire Insured Losses Could Total $7.3B, Covering Area Bigger Than NYC
May 6 2016 // The wildfires ravaging Canada’s oil hub in northern Alberta have rapidly spread to an area bigger than New York city, prompting the air lift of more than 8,000 evacuees as firefighters seek to salvage critical...
Alberta Wildfire Could Become Canada’s Costliest Natural Catastrophe
May 5 2016 // A wildfire in the Alberta city of Fort McMurray is set to become the costliest ever Canadian natural disaster for insurers, with 1,600 buildings destroyed and another 19,000 under threat, analysts and industry sources...
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...
