Northern California fire damage claims rise to unprecedented $9 billion

Damage claims from the October wildfires that tore through Wine Country and beyond have jumped to $9 billion, state Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones said Wednesday.

The losses — reported to major insurance companies and tracked by the state — far surpass claims from any other wildfire event in California. The 1991 Oakland hills fire was previously the most costly, with about $2.7 billion in reported damages after accounting for inflation, according to the New York-based Insurance Information Institute.

The recent blazes destroyed more than 5,000 homes and nearly 1,000 businesses across six counties, according to the commissioner’s office.