Wildfire ranks as Newfoundland’s costliest property loss event this year

An August wildfire in Kingston, Newfoundland and Labrador, has cost Canadian P&C insurers more than $70 million in losses, according to new estimates from Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. (CatIQ).

Prolonged dry conditions and hot temperatures made much of Newfoundland and Labrador susceptible to wildfires in August. The Kingston wildfire ignited on Aug. 3 and rapidly expanded in the Conception Bay North region of southeastern Newfoundland, impacting at least nine communities on the western side of the bay, Insurance Bureau of Canada says Wednesday in a press release.

Upwards of 3,000 residents were forced to evacuate as the fire damaged homes, businesses and infrastructure.

“Our hearts go out to the many individuals and families whose lives have been disrupted by this year’s wildfires and who have lost property,” says Amanda Dean, vice president for IBC’s Ontario and Atlantic regions. “The Kingston wildfire in Newfoundland and Labrador resulted in the highest amount of insured property losses in Atlantic Canada this year.”

In late August, the Kingston fire was more than 10,000 hectares in size. At the time, a reported 196 structures were lost in the fire, Glenn McGillivray, managing director of the Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction (ICLR), told Canadian Underwriter.

“Though at this time we don’t know entirely what exactly was destroyed, the 196 [lost structures] had electricity meters — so we can assume they are more than just outbuildings,” he said Aug. 25. “A school and a post office were also destroyed, as were more than 200 wooden hydro poles.”

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Evacuation alerts lifted

The province of Newfoundland and Labrador lifted all remaining evacuation alerts for communities affected by the wildfire in Conception Bay North, The Canadian Press reported on Aug. 30.

Newfoundland and Labrador has seen 228 wildfires this season, with two active but under control, according to the province’s Active Wildfire Dashboard. Last month, approximately 20,000 residents around St. John’s were evacuated due to out-of-control wildfires.

The Kingston fire is “yet another example of the growing frequency and cost of extreme weather in Canada,” Dean says.

“As weather-related disasters, such as wildfires, continue to occur more often, they are placing pressure on claims costs from coast to coast,” she says. “Amid calls for action, the solution is clear – we must properly invest in making our homes, businesses and communities more resilient against severe weather.”

IBC says all orders of government from across the country must prioritize measures to protect people and communities, including:

• Creating a more adaptable building code framework and more stringent building code standards that account for the increasing risk of severe weather
• Supporting communities in developing wildfire preparedness plans
• Incentivizing homeowners and businesses to make homes and businesses more resilient (e.g., introducing rebates and retrofit programs)
• Prioritizing nature-based solutions for fire prevention, such as controlled burns, fire-smart forestry and agricultural practices.

“In addition, Canada should take a proactive approach to emergency management so that communities across the country don’t have to create a unique playbook after each catastrophic event,” IBC says.

Jason Contant

Jason has been an award-winning journalist with Canadian Underwriter for more than a decade, including the past three years as associate editor and, before that, as digital editor for seven years.