Avoid getting burned: lessons from the McKinley wildfire in rural Alaska, USA

Jennifer I. Schmidt; Matthew Berman; Christine F. Waigl

doi:10.1071/WF24014

RESEARCH ARTICLE (Open Access)

Previous Next Contents Vol 33(11)

Avoid getting burned: lessons from the McKinley wildfire in rural Alaska, USA

Jennifer I. Schmidt

^A ^* , Matthew Berman ^A and Christine F. Waigl ^B

+ Author Affiliations

- Author Affiliations

^A University of Alaska Anchorage, Institute of Social and Economic Research, Anchorage, AK 99508, USA.

^B University of Alaska Fairbanks, International Arctic Research Center, Fairbanks, AK 99775, USA.

^* Correspondence to: jischmidt@alaska.edu

International Journal of Wildland Fire 33, WF24014 https://doi.org/10.1071/WF24014

Submitted: 24 January 2024 Accepted: 28 September 2024 Published: 25 October 2024

© 2024 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing on behalf of IAWF. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)

Abstract

Background

Climate change and continued development in the wildland–urban interface (WUI) have increased risks to property and infrastructure from destructive wildfires.

Aims

A better understanding of the factors associated with building survival will promote resilience of WUI communities.

Methods

We studied factors associated with the likelihood that a building burned during the 2019 McKinley fire in the Alaska boreal forest, USA. We examined the potential influence of both ecological or socio-economic factors on building loss.

Key results

The probability of a building burning was significantly associated (P < 0.001) with a building burning nearby (within 30 m). Having less flammable deciduous cover nearby (within 100 m) improved survival. Buildings with lower value on larger parcels were more likely to burn, as were buildings with larger perimeters. Other important factors associated with burning included the number of buildings both nearby (within 30 m) and within the property parcel boundary.

Conclusions

Our results suggest that social and ecological factors contribute to building survival, indicating that a comprehensive social-ecological approach would provide the most effective support to WUI communities with wildfire risks.

Implications

A comprehensive approach that integrates social, economic, and ecological factors is important in understanding building loss in WUI wildfires.

Keywords: Alaska, Arctic, decision making, mitigation, planning, risk, SES, socio-economic, wildland fire, WUI.

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