A better first world example is laws change and now this site where you were gonna build self storage for 20yr before selling out to an apartment/office developer is now worthless
We have seen forest fires burning city blocks in west coast cities in the recent past, can't get more first world than that.
If you think insurance will save you, it might not if no one is willing to insure your property (large true in California nowadays) or the insurance company goes bankrupt in a crisis (happens pretty much all the time).
