How Much Damage Do Wildfires Cause?

Natural catastrophes often connected to unusually high temperatures like wildfires and droughts were responsible for losses of $18 billion in the United States in 2022, only half of which were insured according to management consulting and reinsurance providers Aon and Munich Re. Aon classifies a natural catastrophe as an event causing $25 million or more in property losses, ten deaths, 50 people injured or 2,000 filed claims or homes and structures damaged. As our chart shows, estimated losses have been declining since hitting a record high in 2018.

In this particular year, Munich Re estimated losses of about $25 billion on U.S. soil. Around $56 million in insured losses were connected to the Mendocino Complex Fire, which has been categorized as one of the largest California wildfires in modern history. The wildfires burned 459,000 acres and lasted from late July until early January 2019. These catastrophes were overshadowed by the 2020 wildfire season in the Western United States, causing 47 deaths, burning 10.2 million acres and destroying more than 13,000 structures across more than 100 fires in four months.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, climate change is one of the main drivers of increased wildfire activity worldwide. Increased heat and extended drought caused in parts by rising emissions and global warming create favorable conditions for wildfires, which are more likely to spread further and burn longer in arid conditions. In addition to destroying structures and causing death and severe injury, wildfires contribute to global tree cover loss. As estimates by Global Forest Watch show, 2022 saw a total tree cover loss of 56 million acres, 16.6 million of which were attributable to wildfires.