This message was sent to ##Email## October 31, 2019   |   Home  |   About  |   Membership  |   Education & Training  |   Resources  |        TOP NEWS Hundreds of thousands evacuated as wildfires spread in California Route Fifty California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a statewide emergency as two wildfires spread across the state, originating in wine country near San Francisco, and around Los Angeles in the southern portion of the state. Around 200,000 people have already evacuated, and thousands of buildings are at risk for fire damage. People are also dealing with bad air quality and school closures, while forecasters recently began to warn of powerful winds recently expected around L.A.  READ MORE    SPONSORED CONTENT Promoted by Galvanize [eBook] Better Practices in Compliance Management [eBook] Mastering Risk with Data-Driven GRC [eBook] Using Analytics to Balance Risk Control and Productivity   Cutting California's power is job nobody wants ahead of blackouts Claims Journal California’s governor is sparring with the state’s largest utility over who decides when to cut the power. It’s a no-win situation: As hot, dry winds sweep across the state, switching off the electricity is seen as a needed measure to keep power lines from sparking wildfires. But making the call is a thorny political challenge. PG&E Corp. raised the issue in a recent letter to Governor Gavin Newsom at a time when rising temperatures resulting from climate change leave the state with millions of acres of bone-dry vegetation just as seasonal windstorms arrive.  READ MORE Thousands of homeowners in fire zones are losing their insurance ABC 7 News It's getting harder for thousands to find fire insurance. The disastrous blazes have insurance companies dropping customers living in wildfire areas — and many new homeowners can't buy a policy in a wildfire area. The state Department of Insurance released some astonishing figures. Insurance companies refused to renew more than 167,000 homeowner policies last year. That's up 6% statewide — and up 10% in wildfire areas alone. Statistics show about 9,000 residents in disaster zones lost their homeowners insurance in 2018.  READ MORE    SPONSORED CONTENT Promoted by Insurance Program Managers Group The most effective way to protect public safety employees How to use predictive data to reduce workers’ compensation claims Don’t fear your workers’ compensation audit — here’s what you need to know Minimizing claims costs by tackling core issues affecting workforce health The tools public entities need to mitigate risk and manage claims   Total traffic deaths decline, but pedestrian, cycle deaths rise Governing A national report released recently confirmed 6,283 pedestrians were killed in crashes across the country in 2018, the highest number in nearly 30 years. Pedestrian deaths increased 3.4% across the country while more bicyclists also were killed in 2018, with 857 deaths, a 6.3% hike. The increases come amid a decline in fatalities of people traveling inside vehicles in the United States, according to the report by the National Highway Safety Transportation Administration (NHTSA.)  READ MORE What cities can learn from Atlanta's cyberattack City Lab In March 2018, hackers targeted Atlanta’s computer networks. Demanding $51,000 in bitcoins, the cyberattack held the city hostage for nearly a week. Some city services reverted to pen and paper to continue operations. But the city refused to pay: It didn’t want to reward and encourage more ransomware attacks, and there was no guarantee that systems would be restored even if it paid. Ultimately, the financial hit to the city was far higher than the ransom. One city report uncovered by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution estimated that the costs associated with the attack could reach as high as $17 million.  READ MORE    SPONSORED CONTENT Promoted by Axios The Axios Markets newsletter is a daily look at: The top news stories dominating business and finance Analysis of high level industry trends supported by proprietary data visualizations Subscribe to Axios Markets and other Axios newsletters today.   A guide to help victims navigate a major disaster NJ Spotlight As victims of Superstorm Sandy know well, recovering from a major disaster can require individuals and businesses to complete many tedious but important tasks. They include preparing insurance claims for damaged properties and replacing credit cards and other lost or ruined personal documents. To ease the process, the New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants has created a comprehensive “disaster-recovery guide” that victims can turn to for key information and suggestions.  READ MORE In erosion-threatened Akiak, Alaska, emergency management officials assess aid options Alaska Public Radio Recently, state emergency management officials visited Akiak to see how they can help with the erosion confronting the village. An erosion event in spring 2019 left several homes less than 100 feet away from the river. Akiak already received federal funding to move the six homes closest to the riverbank in September. But Jeremy Zidek, public information officer at the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, says that there is a problem with moving one of the structures.  READ MORE PRIMA Risk Watch Connect with PRIMA Recent Issues | Subscribe | Unsubscribe | Advertise | Web Version  Colby Horton, Vice President of Publishing, 469-420-2601 | Download media kit Bethanney Standerfer, Content Editor, 469-420-2688  | Contribute news Public Risk Management Association 700 S. Washington St., Suite 218 | Alexandria, VA, 22314 | 703-528-7701 | Contact Us  Learn how to add us to your safe sender list so our emails get to your inbox. 7701 Las Colinas Ridge, Ste. 800, Irving, TX 75063