Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Arkansas, Oklahoma Still Recovering From Last Week’s Tornadoes
Dec 7 2018 // Oklahoma and Arkansas continue recovery efforts following a series of tornadoes that ripped through the region last week. An EF2 tornado in Oklahoma’s Lake Tenkiller area destroyed homes, boat docks and buildings....
Deadly California ‘Firenado’ Explained in New Study
Dec 7 2018 // A rare fire tornado that raged during this summer’s deadly Carr Fire in Northern California was created by a combination of scorching weather, erratic winds and an ice-topped cloud that towered miles into the...
Aon Cites Need for Mitigation as Insured Wildfire Losses Top $10B for Second Year
Dec 7 2018 // Total aggregated economic losses for the wildfires that have burned across Northern and Southern California throughout the month are expected to minimally exceed $10 billion, while insurance claims payouts for wildfires...
Modeler: Insured Losses from Camp Wildfire in California at $6B to $9B
Dec 6 2018 // Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide estimates that industry insured losses from the Camp Fire in Northern California will be between $6 billion and $9 billion, and taken together with the Woolsey fire in Southern...
California Attorney General Brought into PG&E Wildfire Probe
Dec 6 2018 // California Attorney General Xavier Becerra was asked by a federal judge to weigh in on whether reckless operation of power lines by PG&E Corp. in connection with deadly Northern California wildfires would constitute a...
2 Tornadoes Cause Damage in Alabama
Dec 6 2018 // The National Weather Service says it has confirmed that two tornadoes touched down in Alabama last weekend. The emergency management director for Dothan and Houston County, Chris Judah, says a weak twister hit Dothan early...
Farmers Expects $2.1B in Claims from California Wildfires
Dec 5 2018 // Farmers Insurance expects $2.1 billion in claims from the California wildfires in November. The Los Angeles, Calif.-based carrier said it has so far received more than 9,000 claims combined for the Camp Fire in Northern...
Giant Hole Created by Hurricane Michael Threatens Housing, Cemetery in Florida Town
Dec 5 2018 // Hurricane Michael created a giant hole in a north Florida town that is threatening a nearby cemetery and public housing duplexes. The Tallahassee Democrat reported Sunday that the October storm caused a crater along a...
Florida Insurance Agents Improvise to Stay Connected During Hurricane Michael Recovery
Dec 5 2018 // The page has finally turned on the tumultuous 2018 hurricane season, but for the agents who live and work in the Florida Panhandle the story isn’t over – personally or professionally. “We all still feel like...
North Carolina Legislature Finalizes $300M Hurricane Relief Spending
Dec 4 2018 // Nearly $300 million in additional state spending to address North Carolina’s recovery from Hurricane Florence received quick and unanimous approval from the state legislature and the governor. The House voted...
Schools Open 3 Weeks After Northern California Wildfire
Dec 4 2018 // Monday marked a return to school and some semblance of routine for thousands of children who lost their homes to a deadly wildfire in Northern California. Schools in Butte County have been closed since Nov. 8, when the...
3 Oil Companies Settle in Class-Action Suit over Oklahoma Earthquakes
Dec 4 2018 // Three oil companies have reached a settlement with plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit over damaging earthquakes in central Oklahoma. The companies — Spess Oil Co., Equal Energy US Inc. and Fairfield Oil and Gas Corp....
Morgan Stanley: State Farm, Allstate Largest Insurers Exposed to Alaska Quake
Dec 3 2018 // State Farm, Allstate and USAA have the lion’s share of exposure from the magnitude 7.0 earthquake that struck Alaska on Nov. 30, according to a Morgan Stanley Research brief put out on Monday. The epicenter was...
Multiple Tornadoes Hit the Midwest; One Killed in Missouri
Dec 3 2018 // The National Weather Service says multiple tornadoes touched down in central Illinois, damaging dozens of structures, downing power lines and injuring at least 20 people. Meteorologist Chris Geelhart says the twisters...
Alabama Condo Complex Earns IBHS’ First-Ever Hurricane Gold Designation
Dec 3 2018 // Local developers in coastal Alabama that utilized Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety’s (IBHS) FORTIFIED Commercial construction standards in the design of a coastal condominium complex have earned the...
Researchers: Houston’s Urbanization Partly to Blame for More Frequent and Intense Rain Events
Dec 3 2018 // Studies published earlier this year by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Hurricane Center showing a dramatic increase in the frequency of intense rain events in the Houston area in recent...
Will California See More Laws and Regulations in Wake of Wildfires?
Dec 3 2018 // Last year’s California wildfires destroyed thousands of homes and cost billions of dollars, but they also created numerous new laws and regulations in their wake as Legislators and insurance regulators looked for...
Imagery and Artificial Intelligence in Wildfire Risk
Dec 3 2018 // Fires across North America in 2018 have continued the pattern of extreme destruction established by significant insured loss events in both Northern and Southern California last year and the 2016 disasters in Alberta and...
Reducing Fire Risk Doesn’t Cost More
Dec 3 2018 // Properties built in wildfire-prone areas could be built to better withstand fire risk without increasing the cost of construction. That’s according to a new study released last month that found negligible cost...
Massive Earthquake Shakes Alaska, Hitting Roads And Bridges Hard
Dec 2 2018 // A powerful earthquake jolted southern Alaska on Friday morning, buckling roads, disrupting rush-hour traffic and jamming telephone service in and around Anchorage, the state’s largest city, but there were no reports...
