ABSTRACT
Wildfires play an important role in ecosystems, but they can have devastating impacts on people and communities. This chapter provides an introduction to wildfires and their causes and then examines how wildfires affect people and their communities. Fatalities and injuries, damage to property and infrastructure, economic impacts, and social and psychological impacts are discussed. Details are provided about the psychological impacts of the Australian 2009 Black Saturday wildfires and the health impacts of wildfire smoke due to the Australian wildfires of 2019–20. Wildfire prevention and mitigation activities that can be implemented by governments and other organizations, and by residents, are discussed. The importance of evacuation planning is illustrated using the 2016 Fort McMurray (Horse River) fire example. Insights into Indigenous fire stewardship are also provided. Preparedness for wildfire evacuations and alternatives to evacuation are discussed. More work is needed to reduce the negative impacts of wildfires on people and communities. Promising ways to further reduce the impacts of wildfires include further use of land-use planning as a mitigation tool; learning from Indigenous peoples about the safe management of fire in the landscape; emphasizing other benefits of wildfire mitigation activities as well as their potential to reduce wildfire risks; and incorporating future wildfire mitigation into the post-wildfire recovery process. Research needs include the health risks of wildfire smoke and mitigation actions during smoke events, wildfire prevention, and land-use planning as a wildfire mitigation tool.
