2021 COLORADO WILDFIRE LOSSES SURPASS $2 BILLION
www.gjsentinel.com
A wildfire that destroyed nearly 1,100 homes and businesses in suburban Denver last winter is now the costliest in Colorado history as it has now caused more than $2 billion in losses.
Official estimates released days after the fire put the losses at more than $500 million; however, additional insurance claims and assessments of the scope of rebuilding from the wildfire prompted the new estimate.
A Colorado Division of Insurance analysis found that 67% of homeowners who lost their homes in Boulder County didn't have enough insurance to replace them. Lawmakers are passing bills aimed to boost firefighting resources and mitigation planning.
BOARD UPDATED ON CONTAMINATION AT ELK RIVER LANDFILLL
www.StarTribune.com
During a workshop meeting on October 4, Waste Management Groundwater Protection Program Senior Director Terry Johnson presented an overview of groundwater investigations that led to corrective actions at the Elk River Landfill. Groundwater has been monitored at the site three times a year for more than 35 years through a variety of methods, which includes borings and well samplings.
The contamination mainly consists of vinyl chloride, which federal law requires to be 2 parts per billion or lower. Minnesota law, however, requires vinyl chloride contamination to be 0.2 parts per billion or lower. Terry Johnson said the contamination at the Elk River Landfill doesn’t meet the federal limit for contamination but does meet Minnesota’s limit.
There are several ways to attempt to limit groundwater contamination from the unlined portion of the landfill, including putting a liner over the top to prevent water going through the site and putting in gas collection to pull out contaminants, both of which Waste Management has already done according to Terry Johnson. Another option is for Waste Management could pump groundwater out, treat it and put it somewhere else.
INVESTORS EYE FLORIDA HOMES DAMAGED BY HURRICANE IAN
www.CNBC.com/
Investors and home buyers are hunting for deals on damaged homes and distressed commercial properties despite the destruction that Hurricane Ian brought to southwestern Florida less than a month ago. Home prices have skyrocketed in recent years so investors may take advantage of the Florida residents who want to leave the state.
The full extent of damage caused by the storm in southwestern Florida continues to be assessed. The total cost of flood and wind damage to Florida residential and commercial properties is expected to fall between $40-$64 billion.
While Americans may be uncertain about moving to a market that is prone to hurricanes, the median sales price for a single-family home in southwestern Florida increased by nearly 25 percent to $725,000 between August 2021 and August 2022.
TRUST’S PLEA SEEKING PROPERTY DAMAGES FROM AHMEDABAD MUNICIPAL CORPORATION DISMISSED
TimesOfIndia.IndiaTimes.com
A division bench of the Gujarat High Court recently dismissed an appeal by a public charitable trust, which ran a park in Juhapura, seeking damages and compensation for destruction of their property to the tune of crores ($10 million) by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC).
The Society for Promoting Rationality (SPRAT), was running the Muskaan Park in Juhapura on a land owned by the AMC. According to SPRAT, the AMC evicted them on short notice during the Covid-19 pandemic. SPRAT moved the high court in 2021 where a single-judge court had ruled that the court cannot go into the jurisdiction of paying damages, as it requires a detailed inquiry. However, it granted SPRAT the liberty to move the appropriate court to seek damages.
RITZ CARLTON NAPLES TO REMAIN CLOSED
www.naplesnews.com
Florida’s West Coast could be without one of its’ luxury resorts through 2023 due to damage caused by Hurricane Ian.
The Ritz Carlton, Naples, has given notice to the state of Florida that it is forced to temporarily lay off 591 of its workforce while the hotel is closed, effective October 13. The hotel’s HR manager informed the state that the property is focusing on a reopening date in the early part of 2023, but “the reopening could be extended with the rebuilding of the power grid, infrastructure and supply chain delays.” The manager also stated that the layoffs could span six months or more.
CORPS TO CONDUCT FURTHER TESTING AT CONTAMINATED SCHOOL
www.CNN.com
Radioactive contamination in a Missouri grade school has prompted the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to conduct new testing, according to U.S. Rep. Cori Bush. Bush was among several local, state and federal lawmakers that pushed for private testing after high levels of contamination were found at Jana Elementary School.
Jana Elementary is located next to Coldwater Creek, a 19-mile-long waterway contaminated decades ago with Manhattan Project waste. A federal report released in 2019 determined those exposed to the creek from the 1960s to the 1900s may have an increased rise of bone cancer, lung cancer and leukemia.
WAYS HURRICANE IAN’S FALLOUT COULD HAVE A LINGERING EFFECT ON ORLANDO REAL ESTATE DEALS
www.bizjournals.com
The region’s commercial and residential real estate sectors are seeing the effects from Ian’s destruction. Greenberg Traurig’s Alan Sheppard told Orlando Business Journal “This may have an impact on pending transactions – things that haven’t closed yet that are in the pipeline.”
Peter C. Vilmos of Burr & Forman, specializes in construction litigation. “The first thing that we’re thinking of, and what we’re already hearing, is ‘what are we going to have to do to [building] codes?’” Vilmos said. Vilmos recalled the way codes were stiffened in the wake of Hurricane Andrew.
On the commercial side, Vilmos noted that commercial properties such as warehouses are often in low-lying or flood-prone areas, prompting both landlord and lessees to be proactive at the outset of agreements. “Depending on how the lease is written, and depending on what went wrong, if the inventory is flooded and therefore unsellable – who’s going to pay for that cost?”
FAILED RETAINING WALL BRINGS DAMAGE TO MISSION HILLS HOME
Court records show that Arrow built upper and lower retaining walls in the backyard property at 5930 Mission Drive. The home which is located next to the access road for Kansas City Country Club is owned by a senior VP of wealth management for UBS in Kansas City.
The lawsuit states that a May 2021 rainstorm caused Brush Creek to flood, resulting in failure of the upper retaining wall that Arrow finished building in the fall of 2020, causing extensive damage to the property. After the flood destroyed the retaining wall and caused damage to the Plaintiff’s home, he filed a claim with Nationwide. The insurer determined that the damage was not covered under the policy and denied the claim in June 2021, according to the lawsuit.
Damage to flooded San Francisco high-rise may cost $20M to fix
www.sfgate.com
Flooding began last Tuesday, Oct. 11, at San Francisco’s 100 Van Ness in Hayes Valley. A standpipe — a high-volume spigot used to hook fire hoses up to the building’s water supply — was allegedly vandalized on the 11th floor of the 29-story high-rise, sending a massive wave of water through the halls and to the ground floor below.
The San Francisco District Attorney’s Office has charged a tenant of the building with felony vandalism and resisting arrest in connection to the broken pipe. At least 50 units have been evacuated, including all 16 units on the 11th floor. 90 out of approximately 400 units in the building may eventually need to be evacuated. The building’s owner, Emerald Fund, claims the damage will cost $20 million to fix.
FLOWAGE EASEMENT RULING: UPSTREAM ADDICKS AND BARKER RESERVOIRS, HURRICANE HARVEY
www.HoustonChronicle.com
Starting Aug. 28, 2017, Hurricane Harvey hit the Houston area. Addicks and Barker flood reservoirs, on either side of Interstate 10, filled during Harvey. The floodwater they retained caused widespread flooding of homes and businesses. After the storm, more than 1,600 businesses and homeowners sued the Army Corps in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, contending the government intentionally planned for the reservoirs to flood their land.
In December 2019, the court ruled that the flooding of properties upstream constitutes a taking and that a permanent flowage easement will be taken up to the flooded elevations. More recently, in late October 2022, court ruled that six of the upstream properties that flooded during Hurricane Harvey will collectively receive $550,000. It is estimated that between 10,000 and 12,000 upstream homes were impacted during Harvey and it is estimated that the total compensation could be roughly $1.67 billion before interest.
For the upstream property owners who intend to file a claim, they have until August 2023, the sixth anniversary of Hurricane Harvey, to do so. Furthermore, a ruling is still pending for separate group of residents and business owners located downstream whose properties flooded when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers opened the Addicks and Barker floodgates.
SWISS-LED RESEARCH HELPS UNCOVER NEW TRUTHS ABOUT AIR POLLUTION
vrscout.com
Swiss scientists have built sensitive equipment across Europe to monitor pollution in the air. These monitoring stations measure “aerosol” which is a particle in the air measuring between 0.01 and 10 microns in diameter. This particulate matter can cause many chronic and acute respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, including asthma, bronchitis, and lung cancer.
Scientists and medical professionals used to think that simply reducing the concentration of organic aerosols in the air we breathe would be enough to avoid such health problems. Now researchers from the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) reported in the journal NatureExternal link that the effects of aerosols depend less on how many of them there are and more on the individual source of the pollution, its toxicity and how it enters the human body.
PSI and 70 international collaborators have been able to rank European cities by aerosol concentration. They analyzed the local aerosol pollutant data collected at these stations between 2013 and 2019 to find out which aerosols were present in the air and how they varied across days, months, and seasons. The results show higher concentrations in urban areas. Kraków, the second-largest city in Poland, is the most polluted (40.4 µg/m3), while rural Birkenes in southern Norway are the least polluted (1.3 µg/m3).
KHARGONE: 12-YEAR-OLD BOY ASKED TO PAY RS 2.9 LAKH FOR PROPERTY DAMAGE
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A 12-year-old boy and his father in Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone has received a notice to pay Rs 2.9 lakh for allegedly damaging public property during the Ram Navami violence that took place in April this year.
Madhya Pradesh Prevention and Recovery of Damages to Public Property Act, which came into effect in January, allows the government to seek compensation from offenders who damage public and private properties during agitations. Their neighbors claim that the 12-year-old boy and his father, Kalu Khan, robbed and vandalized their home when violence broke out in Khargone on 10 April.
Though a plea seeking relief was moved by Khan’s lawyer before the Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, the court rejected the petition and asked Khan’s family to approach the tribunal. The tribunal also subsequently denied the plea on vague grounds of civil procedure.
DEALING WITH DIRT PROBLEMS CAUSED BY HURRICANE IAN: DEBRIS AND DAMAGED STRUCTURES
CBS17.com
Hurricane Ian resulted in massive property damages in Florida. Removal of debris and waste will be the first of many efforts by residents and businesses to begin to recover from the storm.
Cleanup may include debris that contains hazardous materials. These materials include asbestos containing materials including shingles, siding, and insulation, automotive/marine batteries, tires, fuel and oil, pesticides, solvents and paint thinners, compressed gas containers, household white goods such as refrigerators, washers/dryers and stoves, electronics such as televisions, radios, stereos, VCRs, computers, and microwaves, PCBS electrical equipment such as transformers and capacitors, preserved wood etc.
Florida Emergency Management teams are creating Disaster Debris Management Sites (DDMS) at strategic locations to potentially expedite the cleanup process. These management teams have outlined initial considerations for the removal of hazardous debris. Class I waste, which includes household garbage, hazardous waste, “putrescible” (likely to decay) waste, and asbestos-containing material or mixed waste should be taken to specific landfills.
NORTH CAROLINA SUES OVER 'FOREVER CHEMICAL' CONTAMINATION
www.NorthCarolinaHealthNews.org
Two new lawsuits were filed by Attorney General Josh Stein against manufacturers of a firefighting foam, alleging that so-called “forever chemicals” in the foam led to contamination at two military facilities and at Piedmont Triad International Airport (“PTI”). Groundwater samples at PTI have shown concentrations of PFOS reaching 8,000 parts per trillion.
Samples from Camp Lejeune and Marine Corps Air Station New River showed PFOA contamination over 25,000 ppt. The EPA is working to publish a proposed national drinking water regulation for PFOA and PFOS by the end of this year.
NEW STUDY FINDS OVER 57,000 ADDITIONAL SUSPECTED DISCHARGERS OF TOXIC ‘FOREVER CHEMICALS’
www.CommonDreams.org
A new study published today in Environmental Science & Technology Letters identifies at least 57,000 sites potentially contaminated with the toxic “forever chemicals” known as PFAS. The potentially contaminated sites included places where PFAS-laden firefighting foam was likely released; certain industrial facilities; sites related to PFAS-containing waste; military sites and airports.
In addition, the Environmental Working Group (“EWG”) published a paper last year in the American Water Works Association’s journal Water Science identifying 41,862 potential dischargers of PFAS.
The Environmental Protection Agency proposed in June a new lifetime health advisory for the PFAS chemicals PFOA, PFOS, PFBS and Gen-X . Dr. Andrews of EWG stated that “As PFAS are found to be harmful at lower and lower levels, it is critically important to identify sources of potential contamination and take steps to protect downstream communities who may be unwittingly exposed.”
FLORIDA'S PROPERTY INSURANCE MARKET WAS ALREADY UNDER STRESS AND HURRICANE IAN COULD MAKE IT WORSE
www.CarrierManagement.com
Over the first nine months of 2022 the U.S. experienced 15 disasters that each caused at least $1 billion in damage. Hurricane Ian is taking the largest toll of these disasters by far – but the extent of the damage could take years to calculate with any precision. Preliminary property damage estimates for Ian so far range from $42 billion to as much as $258 billion, with some landing in the middle. One way to reduce disaster losses is to buy out properties from homeowners residing in flood-prone areas.
FLORIDA'S PROPERTY INSURANCE MARKET WAS ALREADY UNDER STRESS AND HURRICANE IAN COULD MAKE IT WORSE
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ven before Hurricane Ian made landfall in Florida last week, the state's property insurance market was already in its own state of disaster. According to the Insurance Information Institute, Florida homeowners pay nearly three times the national average for property insurance with premiums rising about 33% each year compared to the typical American’s annual increase of 9%.
Another contributing factor to the problem is that according to the state's insurance regulator, nearly 80% of all homeowners' insurance lawsuits in the U.S. come from Florida. By contrast, the state accounts for only 9% of all homeowner claims. Insurance companies operating in Florida say they have been forced to raise rates to cover the costs of handling lawsuits.
In addition, as storms have grown more destructive, reinsurance costs have grown significantly. Some reinsurers are pulling back from Florida. Others are raising rates — reinsurance costs for Florida insurers rose by as much as 50% this year, according to a report.
Even as damage estimates rise, officials have expressed confidence that insurers will be able to pay out Hurricane Ian claims. However, state legislator Brandes said if rates continue to rise by 30% or more, as they have done for many Floridians in recent years, some Florida homeowners may end up paying more for insurance than they do for their mortgage.
WIND OR WATER MAY DECIDE WHO PAYS FOR FLORIDA REBUILD
www.Aljazeera.com
Court fight looms between property owners, insurance firms as most do not cover flood damage.
Only about a third of the Florida homes in the two coastal counties devastated by Hurricane Ian have insurance policies covering flood damage. Flood damage is usually excluded from standard homeowners’ policies throughout the US.
The Wall Street Journal reported that in some of the inland counties that also suffered severe flooding from Ian, only a handful out of every 100 homes that were destroyed have specific flood coverage.
PG&E FACES SECOND LAWSUIT IN CONNECTION WITH MOSQUITO FIRE
Fortune.com
Pacific Gas & Electric Co. faces a second lawsuit in connection with a wildfire that destroyed homes and forced thousands in Placer and El Dorado counties to evacuate. The lawsuit, filed by Frantz Law Group, is on behalf of residents who suffered property losses and damages due to the Mosquito Fire.
The first lawsuit alleged that PG&E’s “poorly maintained utility infrastructure” is responsible for starting the Mosquito Fire. The wildfire has burned 76,788 acres, according to the U.S. Forest Service. Cal Fire said 78 structures were destroyed and 13 more damaged.
It’s still unclear how the Mosquito Fire started. However, PG&E filed a report with the state’s public utility commission for a pole near where the fire started.