IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 13, 2024--
Natural disasters are becoming more intense as a result of changing weather patterns and wildfires are no exception. The 2024 CoreLogic Wildfire Risk Report found more than 2.6 million homes across 14 states are at moderate to very high risk of wildfire damage during the 2024 wildfire season, with a total reconstruction cost of $1.3 trillion. With those figures as a backdrop, the report also highlights the importance of mitigation techniques, both on an individual property and community wide basis—which have benefits for both homeowners and insurers.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240813649322/en/
The western United States has the greatest wildfire risk with three states comprising 70% of the risk. The following states having the highest number of homes at moderate or greater risk of wildfire exposure:
These states face an elevated level of risk because of the high number of homes in undeveloped areas, or with exposure to Wildland-Urban Interface, where homes are near wildlife such as trees, vegetation and other flammable materials. The Los Angeles metropolitan area leads the nation with the highest number of homes at risk, with more than 245,000 homes with moderate or greater risk of wildfire, representing a total reconstruction value of $186.6 billion although not all homes that experience a loss in a wildfire scenario will be a total loss.
“In recent years, we’ve seen wildfires occur in unexpected places, reinforcing the need to understand the risk landscape and take mitigation action. Both insurers and consumers have a role to play to ensure adequate protection,” said Jon Schneyer, CoreLogic’s director of catastrophe response. “These numbers may seem overwhelming, but research shows that mitigation efforts make a real difference in potential losses from wildfires. The good news is there are actions people can take to lessen the risk.”
Effective mitigation strategies
There have been multiple devastating wildfires in recent years that have highlighted the need for individuals and communities to take mitigation action. For example, the Camp Fire of 2018 decimated more than 90% of the town of Paradise, California. A recent collaborative study with the Town of Paradise, Milliman, Inc, and CoreLogic 1 found combining individual home- and community-level mitigation strategies led to a 75% reduction in expected loss per property in high-risk areas like Paradise, which can also lead to lower insurance premiums.
Effective mitigation is a combined effort between communities and individuals. Some mitigation tactics for individuals include:
Community-level mitigation efforts include:
Additional mitigation tactics can be found through Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety’s (IBHS) Wildfire Prepared Home Program™ at wildfireprepared.org.
To learn more about wildfire risk and prevention, read the full 2024 Wildfire Risk Report.
About CoreLogic
CoreLogic is a leading provider of property insights and innovative solutions, working to transform the property industry by putting people first. Using its network, scale, connectivity and technology, CoreLogic delivers faster, smarter, more human-centered experiences, that build better relationships, strengthen businesses, and ultimately create a more resilient society. For more information, please visit www.corelogic.com.
©2024 CoreLogic, Inc. All rights reserved. While all of the content, data, and information is believed to be accurate, CoreLogic makes no guarantee, representation, or warranty, express or implied, including but not limited to as to the completeness, accuracy, applicability, or fitness, in connection with the content, data, or information or the products referenced herein and assumes no responsibility or liability whatsoever for the content, data, information, or products referenced herein or any reliance thereon. CoreLogic ® is the trademark of CoreLogic, Inc. or its affiliates or subsidiaries.
1https://www.milliman.com/-/media/milliman/pdfs/2023-articles/5-2-23_report-town-of-paradise-20230406.ashx?la=en&hash=A602289482CACACBCAD518C153B12A22
CoreLogic's map of residential properties with a moderate or greater wildfire risk score throughout the western United States. (Graphic: Business Wire)
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — A union leader freed from prison Monday after serving time for her part in a strike against Cambodia’s biggest casino has vowed to continue the labor action until justice is done.
Chhim Sithar was sentenced in May 2023 to two years' imprisonment for incitement to commit a felony, including time served before her conviction, in connection with the strike against the NagaWorld casino, the longest such labor action in the country's history.
She had been leading a strike of hundreds of workers that began in December 2021 to protest mass layoffs and alleged union-busting at the casino in the capital, Phnom Penh, and was arrested and charged after a January 2022 demonstration of dismissed employees who were demanding to be rehired.
NagaWorld in late 2021 had fired 373 employees during financial struggles related to the coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking to The Associated Press at her home shortly after her release, Chhim Sithar vowed to continue leading the strike.
"About our advocacy fighting for union rights at NagaWorld, we will continue holding strike action until we get a solution. That’s the position we have determined since the first strike,” Chhim Sithar said, sitting on the floor surrounded by relatives.
“Unfortunately, as of today, after nearly three years, our workers have still not gotten justice. Therefore, as long as there’s no justice, our struggle continues,” she said.
After Chhim Sithar’s arrest, some dismissed workers continued to hold regular protests, appealing for her release and to get their jobs back. However, the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training announced in December 2022 that more than 200 others had accepted compensation under the labor law and dropped their demands.
“Despite relentless efforts by authorities to suppress the strike — including sexual harassment, physical assaults, and judicial harassment — the LRSU strike continues in Phnom Penh,” the Cambodian human rights organization LICADHO noted Monday.
NagaWorld is owned by a company controlled by the family of late Malaysian billionaire Chen Lip Keong. The company received its casino license in 1994 and the property is a huge integrated hotel-casino entertainment complex.
Previous labor union actions in Cambodia were usually at factories in outlying areas or in industrial estates in other provinces. The protest by the NagaWorld workers in the capital was unusually high-profile and drew police action that was sometimes violent.
Last year, the U.S. State Department named Chhim Sithar among 10 recipients of its annual Human Rights Defender Award. She was described by the then-U.S. Ambassador to Cambodia W. Patrick Murphy as “a courageous and tenacious labor union leader who peacefully advocates for the rights of Cambodian workers.”
Cambodia’s government has long been accused of using the judicial system to persecute critics and political opponents. Prime Minister Hun Manet succeeded his father last year after Hun Sen ruled for four decades, but there have been few signs of political liberalization.
Chhim Sithar, right, a union leader being freed from prison after serving time for her part in a strike against the country’s biggest casino, speaks to her supporters at a club on the outskirts of Phnom Penh Cambodia, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
Chhim Sithar, a union leader being freed from prison after serving time for her part in a strike against the country’s biggest casino, speaks to her supporters at a club on the outskirts of Phnom Penh Cambodia, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
Chhim Sithar, president of the Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld, gestures as she meets her supporters in a club at the outskirts of Phnom Penh Cambodia, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, after the union leader was freed from prison on Monday after serving time for her part in a strike against the country's biggest casino. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
Chhim Sithar, second from right, president of the Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld, sits near her mother, center, as she meets her staff members in her sister's home at the outskirts of Phnom Penh Cambodia, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, after the prominent union leader freed from prison on Monday after serving time for her part in a strike against the country’s biggest casino. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
Chhim Sithar, second from right, president of the Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld, meets with her mother, center, and her staff members in her sister's home at the outskirts of Phnom Penh Cambodia, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, after the prominent union leader freed from prison on Monday after serving time for her part in a strike against the country’s biggest casino. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
Chhim Sithar, president of the Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld, smiles as she meets her staff members in her sister's home at the outskirts of Phnom Penh Cambodia, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, after the prominent union leader freed from prison on Monday after serving time for her part in a strike against the country’s biggest casino. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
