Source: Fortune
Summary
The 2025 global wildfire season saw fewer acres burned, but still resulted in record financial losses. Despite the second smallest number of square miles burned since 2002, the season accounted for 38% of all insured losses related to natural hazards. Fires burned around 335 million hectares of land, causing 90 fatalities and 300,000 evacuations. The study found that wildfires are migrating to higher latitudes due to climate change, leading to more devastating blazes.
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The numbers tell one story.
The 2025 wildfire season was a mixed bag. On one hand, fewer acres were burned, but on the other hand, the financial toll was the highest in recorded history. The study’s lead author, Matthew Jones, noted that “a ‘quiet’ fire year globally can still be devastating.” The fires are migrating to higher latitudes, leading to more intense and destructive blazes. The Palisades and Eaton fires in Los Angeles were one of the most destructive fire catastrophes in California’s history, forcing 200,000 evacuations and causing up to 440 deaths.
Wildfires are quickly emerging as one of the global economy’s biggest recurring pain points. The UN report found that between 2014 and 2023, blazes caused around $106 billion in economic losses globally, including $74 billion in insured losses.
The study’s authors noted that “devastating consequences are not governed by area burned alone.” This sentiment was echoed by the fact that the LA fires were the fifth most costly natural disaster in history for insured losses, with total losses worth $140 billion.
The situation can be reframed as: “A quiet wildfire season is not necessarily a cause for relief.”
Author: Evan Null
