Ashburn, VA

69° F
Location Chevron down
Location News Videos
Use Current Location
Recent

Ashburn

Virginia

69°
No results found.
Try searching for a city, zip code or point of interest.
settings
Ashburn, VA Weather
Today WinterCast Local {stormName} Tracker Hourly Daily Radar MinuteCast Monthly Air Quality Health & Activities

Around the Globe

Hurricane Tracker

Severe Weather

Radar & Maps

News

News & Features

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

Video

Podcasts

Winter Center

News & Features AccuWeather Prime Astronomy Business Climate Health Recreation Sports Travel

News / Weather News

Devastating California wildfires predicted to cost US economy $85 billion; Containment may take weeks

By Brian Lada, AccuWeather meteorologist and staff writer

Published Oct. 13, 2017 7:50 PM EDT | Updated Jul. 1, 2019 4:55 PM EDT

Copied
Watch now

None

Devastating fires charring California have claimed more lives than any fire in the state's history, and the economic toll is predicted to climb to $85 billion.

"These wildfires, especially in Northern California, are particularly devastating,” said Dr. Joel N. Myers, founder, president and chairman of AccuWeather.

“We estimate the California wildfires will profoundly affect the economy of California. The cost to contain and fight the fire and deal with the aftermath will be in the billions. And, the loss in tax revenue from businesses no longer around, including the vineyards; the workers who have lost their jobs and can no longer pay taxes as well as other impacts will be quite costly. This will create a hole in the California budget, which may necessitate an increase in taxes. If California has to borrow more this might negatively impact its bond ratings and it will have to pay higher interest rates on all borrowings, which can cost upwards of 10s of billions of dollars. At this time, we estimate the economic impact of the fires is already approaching $70 billion dollars. Based on our forecast the total costs from this disaster on the economy would exceed $85 billion and, if the fires are not contained in the next couple of weeks, the total economic impact could even reach $100 billion.”

This past week has yielded the deadliest outbreak of wildfires across Northern California, surpassing the 29 fatalities caused by the 1933 Griffith Park Fire. The wildfire complex alone near Santa Rosa killed at least 22 people.

Cal Fire estimated that 5,700 homes and other structures have been destroyed, and approximately 100,000 people had evacuated. The number of evacuees dropped to nearly 75,000 on Sunday morning.

Burned out homes are seen in the Coffey Park area Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2017, in Santa Rosa, Calif. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

AP

It could take three to four weeks to fully contain the fires burning around Santa Rosa.

A reduction in the winds across Northern California will aid firefighters battling the blazes early this week, but low humidity and warm air will persist and allow the fires to burn quickly through the dry vegetation.

Rain, cooler air and increased humidity will arrive by Thursday night and Friday, further improving conditions.

However, winds may strengthen again before and after the rainfall, hampering efforts to reach containment.

Besides weather conditions, other factors like resources, including manpower and equipment, as well as terrain, can all play a role on fire containment. If additional wildfires ignite, that could further strain resources.

2017 wildfire season to go down in record books; USDA at 'a tipping point' due to budget woes

According to the National Interagency Fire Center, more than 51,000 fires have scorched over 8.5 million acres of the U.S. so far in 2017, as of Oct. 13.

Even before the sudden explosion of wildfires in California, federal wildfire suppression costs had already skyrocketed to unprecedented levels.

“As of October 2, 2017, the Forest Service has spent $2.410 billion on fire suppression operations for fiscal year 2017,” the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) said in their weekly update.

With suppression costs exceeding $2 billion, this is the most that the USDA has ever spent on wildfire suppression in one year. However, this figure only includes federal spending on wildfire suppression and not the suppression costs by state and municipal agencies.

https://e.infogram.com/js/dist/embed.js?Y7B

The Associated Press reported on Sunday that half of California's $469 million emergency fund for large wildfires has already been used in the last three months for firefighting costs.

Some of the largest and longest-burning wildfires of the year occurred across the Pacific Northwest in late August and early September. Winds carried the smoke from these fires all across North America.

“We are breaking records in terms of dollars spent, acres of National Forest land burned and the increased duration of fires,” Forest Service Chief Tony Tooke said.

This satellite image from Sep. 5, 2017 shows smoke from fires burning across the western United States and British Columbia stretching across the United States. The red dots are satellite-detected fires. (Image/EOSDIS/Terra/MODIS)

Every year, the budget for the USDA includes money to help battle wildfires, but in recent years, the amount budgeted for wildfire suppression has not been enough.

“In many years, fighting fires costs more than was planned for that year, requiring mid-season transfers of additional dollars from already depleted accounts to pay for firefighting," the USDA said.

In some cases, this means taking money away from projects that are meant to help prevent catastrophic fires in the future.

“The growth in fire suppression costs has steadily consumed an ever-increasing portion of the agency’s appropriated budget,” the USDA said. “The agency is at a tipping point.”

Photos: Massive wildfires destroy California wineries as smoke billows ominously over Disneyland
How inhaling wildfire smoke can wreak havoc on your health
Strong winds, building heat to hinder California firefighting efforts into early this week

Earlier this year, a new bill was introduced in the Senate called the Wildfire Disaster Funding Act.

If passed, this bill would help to reform how wildfire suppression is funded and would limit the current method of transferring money from other projects for the use of wildfire suppression.

California Senator Dianne Feinstein, who helped to introduce the bill, told Congress, “it’s long past time we treat wildfires like other natural disasters and allow federal agencies to pay for them like other natural disasters.”

Report a Typo

Weather News

Weather Forecasts

Western states to sizzle this week as heat builds

Aug. 15, 2022
Recreation

Odd clouds doing 'the darndest things' hover over Chicago skyscrapers

Aug. 12, 2022
Astronomy

Saturn opposition: Why August is perfect for spotting the ringed plane...

Aug. 15, 2022
Severe Weather

Risk for flooding downpours across Central states early week

Aug. 15, 2022
Climate

Arctic warming nearly 4 times as fast as entire globe, study says

Aug. 11, 2022
Weather News

Bystanders spring into action seconds before sinkhole swallows car

Aug. 12, 2022
Weather News

Army identifies 2 Fort Benning soldiers killed by fallen tree in Ga.

Aug. 11, 2022
Recreation

Level up your barbecue game this summer with these gas grills

Jul. 15, 2022
Recreation

Why a zero-gravity chair is what you should add to your yard this year

Jul. 19, 2022
Show More Show Less Chevron down

Topics

News & Features

AccuWeather Prime

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

Top Stories

Weather News

‘Chocolate waterfall’ roars to life after summer storms

2 days ago

Weather Forecasts

Clash of heat, fall-like air to spawn storms across Plains

1 hour ago

Hurricane

Tropical rainfall funnels into Texas and Mexico, threatening flooding

4 hours ago

Weather News

Woman, 63, dies after being impaled by windswept beach umbrella

2 days ago

Weather News

Exploring the curious case of the 'exploding' tree in Portland

2 days ago

More Stories

Featured Topic

Local Arthritis Forecast

Featured Stories

Explore this hurricane-beaten ghost town where time has all but stoppe... Webb space telescope glimpses most distant star known to exist The tools you need to maintain your garden through the rest of summer
AccuWeather Weather News Devastating California wildfires predicted to cost US economy $85 billion; Containment may take weeks
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs Podcast RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Shop AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Weather Blogs Winter Weather
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs Podcast RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Shop AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Weather Blogs Winter Weather
© 2021 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | TAG Disclosure | Do Not Sell My Data checkmark Confirmed Not Selling Your Data

We have updated our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy.

I Understand

Get AccuWeather alerts as they happen with our browser notifications.

Notifications Enabled

Thanks! We’ll keep you informed.

FEEDBACK