Even being rich and famous does not make you immune to the impacts of rising global temperatures.
This became apparent as Rainn Wilson, one of the stars of the beloved, long-running sitcom “The Office,” took to Instagram to share that wildfires had forced him and his wife to once again evacuate, this time from a home in Oregon.
“This is our fourth evacuation over the last six years,” Wilson says in a video posted online.
What’s happening?
In the video, Wilson, most recognized for his role as workplace suck-up Dwight Schrute, did not name the specific Oregon blaze that had forced his evacuation.
However, he most likely was referring to the Flat Fire, which has burned over 22,000 acres while being only about 5% contained, according to The Oregonian. The blaze was threatening roughly 4,000 homes.
Wilson also shared that he had previously been impacted by the devastating Los Angeles fires, which destroyed half of his Southern California home.
“No matter where I go on the West Coast, there have been fires ravaging the land,” Wilson says in the Instagram video.
“Vulcan, the God of Fire, must have it out for me!” the actor joked in a post accompanying the video before addressing the real cause of his multiple evacuations: rising global temperatures.
“Actually – soaring heat waves and extreme weather drought and floods are the culprit,” he explained.
Why does it matter?
While some people might wonder why they should care that a rich Hollywood actor was being inconvenienced, Wilson was using his platform not to complain but to warn about the increasing threat of rising temperatures, particularly in the Western U.S.
“DO NOT BELIEVE A STUPID ACTOR that heat trapping gases released by humans have anything to do with it,” Wilson posted. “Believe … NASA. If you like the science they used to get us to the moon, you’ll LOVE their climate science research!”
NASA researchers have indeed provided science that supports Wilson’s claims.
“As the planet warms, hotter weather, earlier melting of winter snow, warmer nighttime temperatures, and decreasing summer rainfall all are contributing to increased fire activity,” NASA explained on its website.
“In the Western U.S., the amount of summertime precipitation has the biggest effect on how much land area is burned in a given year,” NASA continued.
Wildfires take lives, destroy homes and businesses, burn crops, and kill livestock, impacting people well beyond the flames’ reach in the form of higher insurance premiums and food prices.
Across the U.S., home insurance rates jumped 13% from 2020 to 2023, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research.
These increases were even more pronounced in Western states. Colorado, for example, saw home insurance premiums skyrocket 51% from 2019 to 2022, the state’s Department of Regulatory Agencies found.
And those figures only apply to the homeowners who can still get insurance coverage in the first place.
In California, major insurers like State Farm, AIG, and Allstate have stopped issuing new homeowners insurance policies altogether, according to Headwaters Economics.
What’s being done about it?
For decades, scientists have warned that rising global temperatures would increase the severity of weather-related calamities like wildfires.
Reversing this trend will require the world’s economy to transition from dirtier, nonrenewable fuels toward cleaner, renewable sources of energy, such as solar.
To push for action at the political level, consider using your voice by contacting your elected representatives and voting for pro-climate candidates.
Taking things a step further, by driving an EV and installing solar panels on your home, you can reduce planet-heating pollution while also saving money on electricity and gas.
By pairing solar panels with a home battery system, your residence can become more resilient in the event of disaster-related power outages.
EnergySage offers free tools that make it easy to compare quotes from local solar installers and maximize the use of tax credits and other government incentives, saving customers up to $10,000.
With EV tax credits expiring on Sept. 30, 2025, and tax credits for home solar ending Dec. 31, the time to act is now.
Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don’t miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.