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We at KNAU know that northern Arizona wildfire information is crucial to our listeners. This page is our comprehensive source for information about the 2014 wildfire season. Here you will find all the latest updates from area fire agencies and national forests as well as wildfire-oriented stories.For breaking news tips, call the KNAU newsroom at (928) 523-4912 or e-mail ryan.heinsius@nau.edu.

Arizona One of the Country’s Most At-Risk States Due to Natural Disaster

Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests

A personal finance website has ranked Arizona as the 10th most at-risk state for natural disaster. As Arizona Public Radio’s Ryan Heinsius reports, major wildfires caused by persistent drought contributed to the Grand Canyon State making the list.

According to Kiplinger.com, between 2006 and 2013, Arizona’s property damage due to natural disaster was an estimated $3.5 billion dollars. Its most frequent calamities include thunderstorms, flash floods, drought and dust storms. Also, during that eight-year span, 93 deaths resulted from natural disasters in the state.

Kiplinger took all these factors into consideration and worked with the National Weather Service in making its list.

In May, the Slide Fire burned more than 21,000 acres south of Flagstaff and cost more than $10 million to fight. No injuries were reported and no structures burned, but it was the Coconino National Forest’s largest fire in its history. Three years ago, the Wallow Fire — Arizona’s all-time biggest — burned half-a-million acres in eastern Arizona.

Also making Kiplinger’s risk list was Colorado with $3.7 billion in damage between 2006 and 2013, and Oklahoma with $4.5 billion dollars. New Jersey topped the list with nearly $27 billion in damage, much of that due to 2012’s Hurricane Sandy.

Ryan Heinsius was named interim news director and managing editor in January 2024. He joined KNAU's newsroom as an executive producer in 2013. He covers a broad range of stories from local, state and tribal politics to education, economy, energy and public lands issues, and frequently interviews internationally known and regional musicians. Ryan is an Edward R. Murrow Award winner and a Public Media Journalists Association Award winner, and a frequent contributor to NPR's Morning Edition, All Things Considered and national newscast.
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