Washington natural disaster rate rises

QuoteWizard analyzed Federal Emergency Management Agency natural disaster data to find states that have experienced the highest rate increase of natural disasters from the year 1980-1999 compared with 2000-2017.

Key findings for Washington:

-From 1980-1999, Washington had a total of 23 natural disasters.

-From 2000-2017, the state had 61 natural disasters.

-Fires were the most common natural disaster.

-Nationwide, there was $485 billion in estimated property loss from 2000 -2017.

-Between 1980 and 1999, the United States had a total of 751 natural disasters. In 2000-2017 it had 1,997 disasters.

Okanogan County’s 2014 Carlton Complex fire (256,108 acres, two deaths) and 2015 Okanogan Complex, North Star and Tunk Block fires (combined 522,920 acres, three deaths) are included in the 2000-2017 time period, with hundreds of homes, barns and outbuildings lost, along with fencing, farm machinery, livestock, pets, infrastructure, grazing land, forest acreage and crops.

Also falling within the 2000-2017 time period in Okanogan County, but not necessarily drawing disaster designations, were the 2000 Rocky Hull (9,404 acres), 2001 Thirtymile (9,324 acres, four deaths), 2001 Rex Creek (Chelan and Okanogan counties, 50,000 acres), 2001 Gamble Mills (5,550 acres), 2001 St. Mary’s Mission/Virginia Lake Complex (32,980 acres), 2001 Virginia Lake/Virginia Lake Complex (36,680 acres), 2002 Deer Point (Chelan and Okanogan counties, 43,375 acres), 2002 Quartz Mountain Complex (12,144 acres), 2003 Fawn Peak Complex (81,343 acres), 2003 Needles (21,300 acres), 2006 Tripod Complex (175,184 acres), 2009 Oden Road (10,000 acres), 2012 St Mary’s Mission Road (16,853 acres) and several other fires.

According to QuoteWizard, states with the highest increases in natural disasters were wildfire-prone states. Colorado, Nevada and New Mexico saw the largest percentage increases, although Texas (No. 13 overall), California (No. 9) and Oklahoma (No. 5) led the nation in total natural disasters from 2000-2017, with fires being the primary type.

Texas had 172 disasters, California 153 and Oklahoma 122.

“Of the top 15 states with the highest increase in natural disasters, all states except Kansas and Alaska had wildfires as the most common natural disaster,” said the report.

The massive rate of increase in natural disasters in fire-prone states was attributed to several climate and man-made causes, the report said.

“Wildfires in the western United States are not only becoming more frequent, but larger in size and deaths,” said the report. California’s five largest fires on record have occurred since 2010.”

The report said many climate experts attribute the increase and severity of wildfires in the West to a temperature increase since the 1980s.

Along with an overall three-degree increase in temperature, weather patterns are more commonly becoming long periods of wet winter weather with long, hot and dry summers. Foliage grows during the wet winters but dries out in the summer.

“That, paired with firefighting practices of containment over the last century, leaves forested areas to become like kindling for fires,” the report said.

Humans also factor into the picture. In California, the largest wildfires on record were mostly caused by humans or power lines, said QuoteWizard. The biggest fires are near larger population center, which is why there are more deaths and more structures lost.

“All factors of climate change and human intervention are making wildfires become the most common natural disaster in the country,” said the report.

California’s largest fire, the 459,000-acre Mendocino Complex, and its deadliest fire, the Camp Fire that claimed 85 lives, both occurred in 2018 and are not included in the QuoteWizard figures.

The rankings were based on the total number of disaster declarations during the two time periods, said QuoteWizard.

Michigan ranked No. 50, with 12 disasters in each of the two time periods.