Story perspectives

Wildfires Devastate US, UK Sets Record, Canada Emits Billions

6/1/2026

Summary

Story summary

In 2025, wildfires burned 335 million hectares, the second-lowest since 2002, yet devastated the United States.
A Scottish megafire torched over 100,000 hectares, helping the United Kingdom set a burned-area record.
Fires accounted for 38% of insured weather-disaster losses in 2025.
Canada’s boreal forests emitted close to 4 bn tonnes of CO2 since 2023.
Smoke from 2023 Canadian wildfires killed 82,000 people and polluted cities in United States, Europe and Africa.

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Story summary

In 2025, wildfires burned 335 million hectares, the second-lowest since 2002, yet devastated the United States.
A Scottish megafire torched over 100,000 hectares, helping the United Kingdom set a burned-area record.
Fires accounted for 38% of insured weather-disaster losses in 2025.
Canada’s boreal forests emitted close to 4 bn tonnes of CO2 since 2023.
Smoke from 2023 Canadian wildfires killed 82,000 people and polluted cities in United States, Europe and Africa.