Could the L.A. fires raise home insurance costs in Ohio? The Wake Up for Friday, Jan. 17, 2025

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The devastation caused by the Los Angeles wildfires is staggering, with more than 10,000 structures damaged or destroyed.

Even before the fires, though, insurance companies ended thousands of home insurance policies in fire-prone neighborhoods, according to the L.A. Times. One expert pointed to the disaster as evidence of “an uninsurable future.”

But will the catastrophe hike home insurance premiums here?

Insurance is regulated at the state level, so an insurer can’t pass losses in California to customers in Ohio. A disaster in the state can affect rates a year or so later.

— Laura

Cavs at Oklahoma City Thunder: Cavs get rolled by Thunder in rematch of NBA’s best, 134-114

Northeast Ohio weather forecast: Warm temps this weekend

Insurance rates: How catastrophes are eventually priced into consumer insurance premiums is “pretty complex actuarial science” based on long-term trends more so than individual disasters, reports Jake Zuckerman.

Today in Ohio: The Cleveland metropolitan area is among the worst for job growth since the pandemic in the United States. On Today in Ohio, cleveland.com’s daily half-hour podcast, we’re talking about how Northeast Ohio needs bold leadership.

Inauguration flag: Gov. Mike DeWine ordered the U.S. and Ohio flags raised to full staff on all public buildings and grounds on Monday for the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 47th president, reports Laura Hancock. The flags will be lowered back to half-staff in honor of former President Jimmy Carter on Tuesday and will remain lowered until sunset on Jan. 28.

Voter rolls: With the 2024 election results in the books, Ohio will start checking its voter rolls for registrations it will cancel ahead of 2026, reports Anna Staver. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose directed local boards of election Thursday to begin combing through their lists for “abandoned registrations.”

Rulli hire: A congressman from eastern Ohio this week hired the organizer behind a scam charity that pocketed almost all the $150,000 it claimed to be raising for victims of the East Palestine train derailment, reports Jake Zuckerman. Michael Peppel started this week as the communications director for U.S. Rep. Michael Rulli, a Republican who represents a district that snakes up and down most of Ohio’s eastern border.

Weapons factory: A California-based defense technology company plans to build a 4,000-job facility in central Ohio to manufacture “autonomous weapons systems” for the U.S. and its allies, a development state officials say represents the largest single job-creation project in state history, reports Jeremy Pelzer. Anduril Industries plans to invest more than $900 million to build the facility on 500 acres in Pickaway County near Rickenbacker International Airport, a civil-military public airport south of Columbus.

Mike Turner: Saying that he needed a “fresh start” at the helm of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday removed Dayton Republican Mike Turner from the chairmanship he’d held since 2023, reports Sabrina Eaton.

Grain silos: Cleveland Metroparks is considering demolition of the Grain Craft silos and related buildings along the Cuyahoga River in the Flats. The structures could be razed to make way for a riverfront trail that runs along Columbus Peninsula to Flats East Bank as part of the Metroparks’ plan to expand public access along the river, reports Megan Sims.

HUD nominee: U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno on Thursday grilled Donald Trump’s nominee to be secretary of Housing and Urban Development about housing affordability, suggesting that illegal immigration increased costs. He also invited him to visit Cleveland’s public housing after his confirmation, Sabrina Eaton reports.

Rothstein Village: Laura’s Home offers emergency shelter care for homeless women and mothers in crisis, but its newly opened Rothstein Village aims to give residents long-term stability – starting with their own space. Kaitlin Durbin reports that families can stay – rent-free – in one of the 16 transitional housing units for up to two years while they work toward affording their own home and self-sufficiency.

Responder retreat: A spiritual retreat designed to support police officers, firefighters, paramedics and dispatchers will be held on Tuesday in the city’s Little Italy neighborhood. Olivia Mitchell reports the event is from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Holy Rosary Church.

Drought: Traces of snow and cool temperatures weren’t enough to take Ohio’s eastern counties out of drought last week, reports Zachary Smith. After a week of improvements when drought conditions in Ohio’s eastern Appalachian counties were downgraded to moderate drought, the 10 affected counties saw little change in the last seven days.

Car fire: A car positioned dangerously close to a fuel pump at a Twinsburg gas station caught fire early Thursday morning, reports Lucas Daprile.

House fire: A fire Wednesday that heavily damaged a Lake County home that housed several apartments was caused by someone using a torch to melt ice on an exterior wall, investigators say. No one was injured in the fire in Painesville, Cliff Pinckard reports.

COVID cases: The number of new COVID-19 cases in Ohio continued a downward trend, going from 6,639 last week to 5,531 this week, reports Julie Washington. It was the second week that case numbers decreased after five straight weeks of rising COVID-19 case numbers in Ohio.

Grocery chain: Grocery Outlet Bargain Markets will open two new stores in Parma and Brooklyn next week, and a third store in Cleveland Heights in July. Sean McDonnell reports Grocery Outlet has long been expected to enter the Cleveland market — signing leases at several locations — but it is now ready to fully enter Greater Cleveland and Ohio.

Force lawsuit: Akron officials paid $15,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by a man who was repeatedly punched and slammed to the ground by police officers during a traffic stop. Adam Ferrise reports the city already has paid Jordan Ely, who accused officers Warren Spragg and Thomas Phillips of using excessive force.

Nurse charged: A Cuyahoga County grand jury is expected to hear the case of an 84-year-old woman who died Christmas Eve at a Warrensville nursing home. Amber Henderson, 31, of Willoughby Hills was charged in Bedford Municipal Court with involuntary manslaughter, gross neglect of a patient and tampering with records in the death of Alvera Meuti.

Murder arrest: A suspect wanted for capital murder in Texas was arrested Wednesday by a U.S. marshals task force in Conneaut, Olivia Mitchell reports. Quinton Gaines Jr., 18 was wanted by the Pasadena Police Department in Harris County, Texas, for the murder of Chazz Williams, 26.

Airport security: The Transportation Security Administration reported Thursday that it intercepted 31 handguns at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport in 2024, down from 38 discovered in carry-on luggage the previous year, Peter Krouse reports.

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Boat show: Is it summer yet? Obviously not, but you can dream of warmer days this weekend as you wander among a sea of boats at the 2025 Cleveland Boat Show. The show opened Thursday at the I-X Center in Cleveland and continues through Sunday, David Petkiewicz reports.

Orchid show: “Orchids: Love in Bloom” opens Feb. 14 at the Cleveland Botanical Garden and continues until March 30, reports Paris Wolfe. Of the 3,000 orchids presented – 100 different types – most aren’t at local grocery stores or even local garden centers.

Best breweries: Vinepair.com, a New York City-based website for beer and wine aficionados, has named “The 30 Best Breweries in the Country Right Now, According to Beer Pros.” Peter Chakerian reports that Cleveland-area craft beer fans should recognize one of the names on the list: Great Lakes Brewing Co.

2025 movies: Hollywood is promising an exciting year in movies, reports Joey Morona. While the calendar includes the requisite number of sequels, live-action remakes and animated features, the lineup also features bold new projects from visionary filmmakers like Bong Joon Ho, Guillermo del Toro and Barry Levinson.

Non-alcoholic wines: No-alcohol “wines” have a larger audience in Dry January. That audience might get even larger if the public responds to new government warnings that all alcohol is linked to health concerns. Paris Wolfe explains the three different types — dealcoholized, juice-based and wine alternatives.

Things to do: If winter is your favorite season, there are events for you, including tobogganing in the Metroparks and Disney on Ice. The boat show is in town and on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, numerous local museums and institutions are offering free admission and special programming. Mike Rose lists more than 20 things to do this weekend.

Don’t forget, you can always find the latest Cleveland news by visiting cleveland.com. If you value the hard work of Cleveland journalists, consider becoming a cleveland.com subscriber.

— Curated by content director Laura Johnston with contributions by by Cliff Pinckard.

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