Community Hazard Mitigation

5/14/2019 - 6 min read

Why Historic Buildings Such as Notre Dame are at Risk Under Restoration

The tragic fire this week at Notre Dame in Paris is a reminder that why historic buildings are at additional risk when undergoing renovation.

5/14/2019 - 4 min read

Fighting wildfire with fire and fuel reduction

Wildfires need three things—conducive weather, a source of ignition, and a supply of fuel.

5/8/2019 - 4 min read

Growing wildfire exposure feeds need to grasp risk factors

A record 2018 wildfire season in California, with signals suggesting more of the same to come, is driving insurers to seek better risk assessment tools.

4/18/2019 - 4 min read

Reflections from the Camp Fire

2/11/2019 - 3 min read

California wildfire destruction aligns with identified risks

Property destruction from the November 2018 Camp and Woolsey Fires in California shows a strong correlation with areas identified as at risk by FireLine®, Verisk’s wildfire risk management tool.

1/4/2019 - 7 min read

Hot in here: Why it’s getting harder to fight house fires

It’s important for insurers to understand advances in fire science and how they assess a community’s adaptation to evolving challenges in fire protection.

12/10/2018 - 4 min read

How understanding high-performing fire departments can help insurers

ISO’s Community Hazard Mitigation works closely with fire departments and communities through our Public Protection Classification (PPC®) program, which develops classification of community fire suppression capabilities on a scale of 1 (exemplary) to 10. Many Insurers use PPC ratings as a measure of the risk of fire losses in a community, an important item to consider when determining premiums for property insurance.

Camp Fire 11 08 18 Landsat Brighter Closeup

11/13/2018 - 2 min read

Raging California wildfires burn thousands of properties

Wildfires in California surpassed 215,000 acres burned as of November 12, destroying thousands of structures, forcing mass evacuations, and reportedly causing 43 fatalities.

11/9/2018 - 1 min read

Special Hazard Zones capture wildfire risk beyond the flames

When wildfires hit populated areas, flames may not be the only cause of insured loss. Beyond the perimeter of a fire, smoke and ash can damage properties that don’t actually ignite during a wildfire.

10/4/2018 - 3 min read

Wyoming fires’ growing footprint threatens hundreds of homes

Wildfires continue to burn near the Wyoming/Colorado border, and the largest, most destructive ones—the Roosevelt, Marten Creek, and Ryan fires—are at various stages of containment.

9/27/2018 - 5 min read

California wildfires spark state insurance legislation

Recent record-breaking, destructive California wildfire seasons highlighted insurance issues that drove the introduction of over 17 bills during the 2017–2018 state legislative session.

9/7/2018 - 3 min read

PPC: Evaluating fire protection at the grass roots

Insurers measuring the level of protection in a community need to know which station responds first to every address, who and what are inside those stations, where the firefighters get their water, and a host of other data points.

8/13/2018 - 1 min read

Mendocino Complex Fire, California’s largest, keeps burning

Verisk's FireLine categorized more than 99 percent of the Mendocino Complex Fire area as at risk, with over 94 percent at high or extreme risk.

8/6/2018 - 2 min read

Trust, experience give PPC an edge in rating fire protection

Fire protection in the United States didn’t grow up overnight. It arose and evolved piece by piece, and to this day, fire protection is changing in large and small ways. Any measure of its effectiveness requires trust from the fire service that the evaluators are fair and knowledgeable—and trust takes time to build.

8/1/2018 - 2 min read

Slow progress reported against destructive Carr Fire

FireLine, Verisk’s wildfire risk management tool, is guiding analysis of risk factors seen within the Carr Fire’s perimeter. FireLine categorized more than 99 percent of the fire area as at risk, with more than 90 percent at high or extreme risk.