When a California wildfire wiped out the community of Paradise in 2018, it came as a consequence of poor decision-making by those who choose to live in high-risk climate change zones. Not every home and building burned to the ground. Approximately 10% remained standing and largely untouched. When the people who owned or rented these properties went to renew insurance coverage, the companies issuing the policies denied them. For those who lost their homes, California law allowed them to renew their policies for two years. The insurance companies could have raised the policy rates for those still standing, but didn’t. That would have made sense considering Paradise by any definition is located in a high-risk wildfire zone, an increasing phenomenon in America as people move further encroach on nature. In California, that means living right next to tinder-dry environments that are an extreme fire risk.
