Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Remnants of Tropical Storm Causes Flooding, Traps Arizona Cars
Oct 4 2018 // Remnants of a tropical storm drenched parts of the desert Southwest this week, trapping some drivers on swamped streets of Phoenix, Ariz. as authorities prepared for possible flash flooding in the state, central Utah and...
Army Corps Preparing its Own Hurricane Protection Plan for Houston
Oct 4 2018 // Later this month, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will recommend a multi-billion-dollar plan to help protect the Texas coast — the Houston area in particular — from hurricanes. When it will become a reality, however,...
Japanese Typhoons Put Downward Pressure on Creditworthiness of Insurers: S&P
Oct 4 2018 // The recent run of large natural disasters to hit Japan likely has put downward pressure on the creditworthiness of the nation’s three largest non-life insurance groups, according to S&P Global Ratings in a market...
Pennsylvania Warns About Flood-Damaged Vehicles After Hurricane Florence
Oct 3 2018 // With automotive officials estimating that as many as 40,000 vehicles were damaged by flooding from Hurricane Florence, the Pennsylvania Insurance Department and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) are...
Insurtech Jumpstart Rolls out Parametric Earthquake Product for Californians
Oct 2 2018 // A firm that wants to make a name for itself as the first parametric insurtech in the U.S. for earthquakes has officially launched in California, over a year after its anticipated original launch date. Jumpstart Insurance...
Is the Reinsurance Cycle Dead or Just Dormant? Executives Discuss New Realities
Oct 2 2018 // Many reinsurance executives have been left scratching their heads in surprise after last year’s natural catastrophes, which cost a whopping $100 billion but ended up having very little impact on rates. The insurance...
Verisk to Provide Aerial Imagery of Major Catastrophes through Geomni
Oct 1 2018 // Verisk is now offering customers free access to Geomni’s high-resolution aerial imagery following major loss events. Geomni is a Verisk business. Geomni will provide online access to before-and-after imagery of...
Texas Coastal Lawmakers Urge Denial of Windstorm Insurer’s 10% Rate Increase Request
Oct 1 2018 // More than 20 state legislators have signed a letter addressed to Texas Insurance Commissioner Kent Sullivan requesting that a 10 percent rate increase filed by the state’s property insurer of last resort for wind and...
Florence Impact on Insurers Tempered by Mostly Uninsured Flood Losses
Oct 1 2018 // Insurance industry losses from Hurricane Florence, which hit the Carolinas mid-September as a Category 1 storm, will be manageable and not have a severe impact on insurers, according to experts. As the storm turned out to...
South Carolina Issues Emergency Order to Insurers, Updates Hurricane Florence Data Call
Oct 1 2018 // The South Carolina Department of Insurance has issued two Hurricane Florence-related notices to all property and casualty insurers doing business in the state. SCDOI Director Ray Farmer issued an emergency regulation Sept....
Costs to Fight Wildfires in Utah Double This Year
Oct 1 2018 // Costs to fight wildfires in Utah are increasing by about $1 million a day right now and authorities expect the season to last throughout October. State Forester Brian Cottam says on average, there are roughly 1,100 fire...
Death Toll from Indonesia’s 7.5 Magnitude Quake, Tsunami May Reach Thousands
Sep 30 2018 // The death toll from a 7.5 magnitude earthquake and tsunami that hit Indonesia’s island of Sulawesi climbed to more than 800, with casualties expected to reach into the thousands as authorities try to reach those...
Typhoon Trami Hammers Japan; Flights and Trains Canceled in Tokyo
Sep 30 2018 // Typhoon Trami is bringing Tokyo to a halt. East Japan Railway Co. suspended all train service in the Japanese capital on Sunday in preparation for the storm, which is hammering the southwest of the country. Flights were...
Dozens of Structures Damaged in Post-Hurricane Florence Storm in Virginia
Sep 27 2018 // Officials say more than 70 buildings have been damaged or destroyed during a storm that spawned at least 10 tornadoes in Virginia from the remnants of Hurricane Florence. The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports Chesterfield...
Aon Policy Provides Financial Support to Terrorist Victims
Sep 27 2018 // Aon has collaborated with Pembroke Managing Agency at Lloyd’s to develop Public Protection Policy (PPP), which helps businesses provide financial support to individuals affected by a terrorist attack on a...
Post-Disaster Readiness: The Psychology of Downed Trees
Sep 26 2018 // We are grateful for friend of the Academy, Christopher J. Boggs, CPCU, ARM, ALCM, LPCS, AAI, APA, CWCA, CRIS, AINS, Executive Director, Big “I” Virtual University who provided this very personal post. Thanks,...
Insured Losses from China’s Typhoon Mangkhut Estimated at US$1B-US$2B: AIR
Sep 26 2018 // Industry insured losses from Typhoon Mangkhut in mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau will be between US$1 billion and US$2 billion, according to catastrophe risk modeling firm AIR Worldwide. After making landfall in the...
Florence Impact on Insurers Tempered by Mostly Uninsured Flood Losses
Sep 25 2018 // This enhanced satellite image made available by NOAA shows Hurricane Florence off the eastern coast of the United States on Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018 at 5:52 p.m. EDT. (NOAA via AP) Insurance industry losses from Hurricane...
Carolinas Still Facing Major Flooding More Than a Week After Florence
Sep 24 2018 // Major flooding remains in eastern North Carolina more than a week after Hurricane Florence made landfall. Gov. Roy Cooper said Saturday that nine of the state’s river gauges are at major flood stage and four others...
High Winds, Tornadoes Damage Homes, Businesses in Southern Minnesota
Sep 24 2018 // Several tornadoes struck southern Minnesota as severe storms packing powerful winds and heavy rain left a trail of destruction overnight, the National Weather Service said Friday. The extreme weather late Thursday damaged...
