LA wildfire damages set to cost record $135bn
Natalie Sherman and Peter Hoskins
BBC News, 1/10/2025
The Los Angeles wildfires are on track to be among the costliest in US history, with losses already expected to exceed $135bn (£109.7bn).
In a preliminary estimate, private forecaster Accuweather said it expected losses of between $135bn-$150bn as the blazes rip through an area that is home to some of the most expensive property in the US.
The insurance industry is also bracing for a major hit, with analysts from firms such as Morningstar and JP Morgan forecasting insured losses of more than $8bn.
Fire authorities say more than 5,300 structures have been destroyed by the Palisades blaze, while more than 5,000 structures have been destroyed by the Eaton Fire.
With authorities still working to contain the fires, the scope of the losses is still unfolding.
"These fast-moving, wind-driven infernos have created one of the costliest wildfire disasters in modern US history," AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jonathan Porter said.
The 2018 fire that broke out in northern California near the town of Paradise currently ranks as the disaster with highest insured costs, at roughly $12.5bn, according to insurance giant Aon.
That blaze, known as the Camp fire, killed 85 people and displaced more than 50,000.