Latest Wildfire Headlines
All the headlines from our Wildfire Topic Page, ordered by recency.
California Wildfire More Destructive Than Thought
Sep 13 2013 // Fire officials say crews assessing the damage from a Northern California wildfire have determined 68 homes were destroyed. That’s up from the earlier tally of 37. State fire information officer Roy Del Carlo said...
Scientists Assess Damage From Yosemite-Area Fire
Sep 9 2013 // Scientists are assessing the damage from a massive wildfire burning around Yosemite National Park, laying plans to protect habitat and waterways as the fall rainy season approaches. Members of the federal Burned Area...
Yosemite May Be Harbinger of California’s Wildfire Potential
Sep 9 2013 // The massive wildfire in Yosemite is seen by some as a harbinger of what could be a “worst case scenario” when California enters its typical wildfire season in October — continued drought, lots of unburned...
Risk Ratings Weighed for Homes in Fire-Prone Areas in Colorado
Sep 6 2013 // A state task force is mulling a plan that would assign more than 550,000 Colorado homes in wildfire-prone areas a risk rating that would be provided to insurance companies. The task force also discussed plans for a fee on...
Rising Sea Levels Ranked as Greatest Climate Change Threat: Guy Carpenter
Sep 4 2013 // Guy Carpenter & Company has an analysis of the evolving risk landscape spurred by global warming, which stresses that “climate change, global warming and the resulting landscape shift for risk management is a...
California Fire Prompts Unhealthy Air Warnings in Nevada
Aug 29 2013 // The giant wildfire burning at the edge of Yosemite National Park has not only destroyed buildings and threatened water supplies, electricity and sequoias, it has also unleashed a smoky haze that has worsened air quality...
Yosemite May Be Harbinger of California’s Wildfire Potential
Aug 27 2013 // The week-and-a-half-old wildfire in Yosemite is seen by some as a harbinger of what could be a “worst case scenario” when California enters its typical wildfire season in October – continued drought, lots of...
Wildfires Across The West Push Spending Past $1B
Aug 22 2013 // More than 40 uncontained, active and large wildfires dot the western U.S. from Arizona to Washington state and Alaska, taxing national firefighting resources and helping to push spending past $1 billion for the year. The...
Insurers, Government Grapple with Costs of Growth in Wildland-Urban Interface
Aug 15 2013 // The summer of 2013 has been another severe fire season for the United States, a trend that has insurance companies bracing for a new normal: higher rates of property damage as Americans move to wildfire-prone areas in ever...
Otter Declares Disaster for Idaho Wildfire Areas
Aug 14 2013 // Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter has issued a disaster declaration for areas on southern Idaho ravaged in recent weeks by wildfires. The declaration announced Monday specifically targets Elmore County, where two large,...
Scientists Study Debris Flows After Arizona Fire, Federal Aid Denied
Aug 12 2013 // Scientists are studying the potential for debris flows in the area of the Yarnell Hill Fire that burned through rugged terrain last month south of Prescott. Debris flows are composed of water, mud, and rocks that can sweep...
California Faces Longer, Tough Wildfire Season
Aug 12 2013 // California truly is the Golden State this summer – golden brown – and that has fire officials worried heading into the peak of the wildfire season. It’s still weeks before the fire-fanning Santa Ana winds usually...
Southern California Wildfire Pushes East, Forces Evacuations
Aug 9 2013 // A California wildfire that doubled in size overnight torched 15 buildings east of Los Angeles, injured at least five people and forced the evacuation of 500 homes in about half a dozen small communities, authorities said...
State Farm Targets NV Energy for Subrogation Over Reno Wildfire
Jul 29 2013 // State Farm Insurance plans to seek action against NV Energy for claims stemming from a November 2011 wildfire in Reno, Nev. sparked by arcing power lines. The wind-whipped fire destroyed 26 homes and damaged 17. It also...
Oregon Man Charged With Arson in Stagecoach Fire
Jul 25 2013 // Police have arrested a Central Oregon man accused of starting a wildfire that burned a Klamath County cabin and forced the temporary evacuation of about 120 homes. Kelly Parker, 30, of La Pine pleaded not guilty Tuesday...
Colorado Senators Push FEMA for Details On Wildfire Mitigation
Jul 24 2013 // Two senators are pushing the Federal Emergency Management Agency to detail its efforts to mitigate wildfires. Colorado Democrat Michael Bennet and Idaho Republican Mike Crapo (KRAY’-poh) also want FEMA to identify...
Wildfires, Hail Take Toll on Colorado Homeowners Insurance
Jul 22 2013 // It’s safe to say there’s a lot going on in the homeowners insurance scene in Colorado, where homeowners insurance rates are likely to be on the rise for some time. Insured losses from the recent Black Forest...
Report: Arizona Wildfire Grew Quickly, Was Erratic
Jul 17 2013 // A new report shows an Arizona wildfire that began with a lightning strike and caused little immediate concern because of its remote location and small size quickly grew into an inferno, leading officials to rapidly order...
Insurer Group: Colorado’s Black Forest Fire $292.8 Million
Jul 15 2013 // The most destructive wildfire in Colorado history caused $292.8 million in insured losses, according to a preliminary report issued on Monday by the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association. The estimates include...
Wildfires, Hail Take Toll on Colorado Homeowners Insurance
Jul 11 2013 // It’s safe to say there’s a lot going on in the homeowners insurance scene in Colorado, where homeowners insurance rates are likely to be on the rise for some time. Insured losses from the recently doused Black...
