After a storm or fire, many damaged trees can be sold if action is taken quickly. However, the sudden influx of wood into the market often causes prices to drop. Conversely, a decrease in production can lead to price increases. This phenomenon can be surprising: after catastrophic events like fires or storms, the price of wood tends to fall. The general public might expect scarcity to raise prices, but the reality is different. After a major catastrophe, many trees are damaged at the same time. However, this does not mean the wood is lost. If harvested quickly, it remains usable for construction or energy, even though it may not reach the most valuable markets. Some wood will not be harvested because it is not profitable, but the rest must be exploited quickly to limit degradation and preserve commercial value. This results in a potential influx of wood on the market, but the forest-wood industry may not be able to absorb such a large quantity in a short time. The first bottleneck is in the forest, where usual harvesting capacities—loggers, machinery, and access to parcels—are often insufficient to handle the influx of trees felled by a catastrophe. In France, forest engineering companies (ETF) carry out about 80% of the harvesting work. However, the profession is facing difficulties in attracting new workers and is described as physically demanding and dangerous by the national interprofessional organization. For example, harvesting chablis (trees fallen or broken by wind) after a storm is particularly challenging due to the technical and safety issues involved. Public authorities have therefore introduced a lump-sum additional cost of 10 euros per cubic meter for harvesting chablis, deductible from the forestry income of affected landowners. The second bottleneck is logistics. The wood must be felled, shaped, removed from the forest, transported, and stored under conditions that slow its degradation. During major storms, some logs are preserved by spraying with water, which keeps the wood saturated and limits the growth of fungi and insects. This technique helped manage the influx of chablis after storms in the past. For example, the storm Caetano in November 2024 in the Tarentaise Valley required the removal of about 60,000 cubic meters of chablis, equivalent to twenty years of usual harvesting for the commune of Allues. By November 2025, most of this wood had been evacuated, shaped, and sold through emergency supply contracts. The third bottleneck is industrial. France has fewer sawmills than in the past, with only 1,214 in 2022 compared to 9,000 in 1973. This underdimensioning is compounded by a structural shift known as the "French paradox": sawn timber is mostly coniferous, while the French forest is predominantly deciduous. As a result, France imports about 2 million cubic meters of coniferous sawn timber annually. After a storm, fire, or infestation, the amount of wood that could be sold often exceeds the amount that can be harvested, transported, and processed within the time it retains its value. This leads to a drop in prices, known as a "supply shock." A supply shock was observed after the storms of 1999 and 2009, with the price of maritime pine falling by nearly 60% after the storm Klaus in 2009. Similar price drops were seen in other countries, such as the Czech Republic, where the scolyte crisis of 2018 caused a 73% drop in wood prices. These shocks can lead to a sudden drop in prices followed by a later increase, as trees take years to regrow. The price of maritime pine, for example, collapsed after Klaus before rising to twice its pre-storm price by 2018. To limit these price drops and increases, landowners can use supply contracts that specify a harvesting date and price, avoiding market volatility. However, these contracts are not effective in cases of accidents, where landowners may not meet quality or size requirements. Solidarity among landowners—those not affected delaying their harvesting—can help limit the availability of wood on the market. Public policies, such as storage areas to spread out the supply and subsidies for transport, have been used in the past. A minimum price policy has also been discussed but not yet implemented. Under the effect of climate change, natural hazards are becoming more frequent and intense. This leads to recurring disasters in the same areas, such as droughts, fires, and pest infestations. These multiple and cascading risks will further destabilize the wood market and increase price volatility.