Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
U.S. Tornadoes, Hail and Winds Reach Highest Levels Since 2011: Aon Report
Jun 10 2019 // The U.S. dealt with close to 4,400 reports of tornadoes, hail and straight-line winds in May, the most since 2011, according to weather data cited by Aon’s monthly Global Catastrophe Recap report. According to the...
Flooded Streets, Tornadoes Reported in Louisiana
Jun 7 2019 // Authorities in Louisiana are investigating reports of a possible tornado damage in the Baton Rouge area. The Advocate reports one home was severely damaged by a possible tornado in the community of Central. Baton Rouge...
Federal Crews Begin Assessing Ohio Tornado Damage
Jun 6 2019 // Federal workers are in Ohio and have begun assessing the damage left behind by tornadoes that recently swept through 10 counties. Hundreds of homes and businesses were destroyed and many more were damaged during the...
Researchers Try to Pinpoint Cracks that Can Cause Quakes in South Carolina
Jun 5 2019 // Scientists at the College of Charleston are getting ready for a project to map cracks deep underground and get a better idea where earthquakes may happen in South Carolina. The project will fly a plane in a grid pattern...
7.3 Million Homes, $1.8 Trillion at Risk from Hurricane Storm Surge: CoreLogic
Jun 4 2019 // The Atlantic hurricane season, which began June 1, puts 7.3 million homes at risk with an estimated reconstruction cost of $1.8 trillion, CoreLogic said in its 2019 Storm Surge Report. That’s 300,000 more homes and...
Georgia to Overhaul Warning System Procedures After Tornado Siren Failure
Jun 3 2019 // Emergency officials near Georgia’s coast are investigating how to prevent future failures of an outdoor tornado siren system. The sirens were silent before a tornado passed through the Wilmington Island area east of...
Officials Assess Damage After Tornado Confirmed in Maryland
Jun 3 2019 // The National Weather Service says a tornado touched down in Howard County, Maryland. The Baltimore Sun reported Friday that weather service meteorologists plan to survey the area to assess the damage. There were reports of...
North Carolina School System Settles Tornado Damage Claims with Insurer for $10M
Jun 3 2019 // More than a year after a tornado struck, a North Carolina school system says it’s reached a $10 million settlement with its insurance company for damage to three schools. The News & Record of Greensboro reports...
Bankruptcy Judge Approves PG&E $105 Million Assistance Fund for Wildfire Victims
Jun 3 2019 // PG&E Corp. may set up a $105 million housing fund for victims of 2017 and 2018 wildfires in California, which set records for devastation and were blamed on the utility’s equipment, the judge overseeing the...
Forecasters Say Hawaii May Have Busy Hurricane Season
Jun 3 2019 // Hawaii and the Central Pacific could experience more storms than normal during this year’s hurricane season. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted in late May that there will be five to eight...
Texas Windstorm Insurer Withdraws 10% Rate Increase Filing
Jun 3 2019 // By Stephanie K. Jones Texas’ property insurer of last resort for wind and hail along the Texas coast voted at a May 24, 2019, meeting of its board of directors to withdraw a 10% rate increase filed last year that was...
FCC: Wireless Carriers Were Ill-Prepared for Hurricane Michael Outages
May 31 2019 // A Federal Communications Commission report says wireless carriers’ poor preparation and coordination lengthened communication outages in the Florida Panhandle after Hurricane Michael. The Panama City News Herald...
California Utility Regulator OKs PG&E’s Wildfire Mitigation Plan
May 30 2019 // A Wildfire Mitigation Plan submitted by Pacific Gas & Electric Corp. was approved by the California Public Utilities Commission on Thursday. The state Legislature in 2018 enacted Senate Bill 901 mandating action by the...
Unusual If Not Unprecedented: 500 Tornadoes in 30 Days
May 30 2019 // The U.S. has been rocked by 500 tornadoes in the past 30 days with a trapped jet stream in the atmosphere “stuck in neutral,” according to the U.S. Storm Prediction Center. In the past seven decades, only 2003,...
California Commissioner Wants Insurers to Extend Living Expense Coverage for 2017 Wildfire Survivors
May 29 2019 // California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara on Wednesday announced two new actions intended to assist survivors of the 2017 North Bay Fires who are facing unavoidable delays in rebuilding. The California Department of...
1 Dead After Tornadoes Leave Trail of Destruction Across Indiana, Ohio
May 29 2019 // A swarm of apparent tornadoes so tightly packed that one crossed the path carved by another tore across Indiana and Ohio overnight, smashing homes and blowing out windows. One person was killed and dozens were injured. The...
California Does Not Have a Wildfire Insurance Crisis
May 29 2019 // It’s understandable that wildfire is on the top of mind for California lawmakers this session. Coming on the heels of the 2017 wildfire season that saw $13.2 billion in insured losses, the fires last November that...
8 Tornadoes, Hail Hit Colorado’s Northeastern Plains
May 29 2019 // Severe thunderstorms produced eight weak tornadoes over Colorado’s northeastern plains while snow fell in parts of the mountains on the unofficial start of summer. The National Weather Service says no damage was...
Insurers Face Minimal Losses from Peru and Ecuador Earthquake: A.M. Best
May 29 2019 // A.M. Best said it does not foresee a major impact to the domestic insurance markets in Peru or Ecuador following a significant earthquake centered in Peru that also affected several provinces in neighboring Ecuador. On May...
AAA Survey: Floridians Concerned for Upcoming Hurricane Season
May 29 2019 // Floridians are becoming more concerned about hurricane season, after enduring four major storms in the past three years, including a category five last year, according to a survey from AAA. The AAA survey, conducted online...
