Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Deploying Technology, Security Measures to Fight Weaponization of Autos
Dec 28 2017 // A deadly attack this month in Melbourne, Australia, in which a man plowed an SUV into a crowd of Christmas shoppers, comes from the same playbook used by terrorists in recent years around the globe. Many new vehicles...
Number of Strong Earthquakes in Oklahoma Continues to Decline
Dec 28 2017 // Regulators and scientists say the number of 3.0 magnitude or stronger earthquakes in Oklahoma is declining. The Oklahoma Geological Survey reports the number of quakes of at least that magnitude during 2017 was 294 through...
Wildfires Cost Montana $240M in Tourist Spending
Dec 27 2017 // A new report says summer fires cost the state of Montana $240 million in visitor spending. The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reported preliminary date released by the University of Montana’s Institute for Tourism and...
Typhoon Tembin Leaves Trail of Death, Destruction in Philippines
Dec 27 2017 // A powerful storm that left a trail of death and destruction in the Philippines was downgraded to a tropical depression Tuesday [Dec. 26] and failed to make landfall in Vietnam. Hundreds of thousands of people in...
Weather Service Reports Possible Tornado in Southern Mississippi
Dec 22 2017 // The National Weather Service says a possible tornado has touched down in southern Mississippi. Forecaster Robert Ricks says people saw a funnel cloud north of the Salem community in Walthall County. Ricks says radar...
California Commissioner Asks Insurers to Forego Detailed Home Inventories in Wake of Wildfires
Dec 21 2017 // California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones is asking insurers to help California wildfire survivors by providing relief from detailed home inventories and to provide up to 100 percent of contents coverage limits without...
Willis Towers Watson Places Cat Bond for France’s Covea Mutual
Dec 21 2017 // Willis Towers Watson Securities said it has structured and placed EUR 90 million of insurance-linked securities (ILS) for Covea Mutual Insurance Group, France’s largest domestic property/casualty insurance group. The...
St. Louis Cardinals’ Anti-Terrorism Safety Act Plan Approved
Dec 20 2017 // The St. Louis Cardinals have received federal certification giving the organization legal protections in the event of a terrorist attack at Busch Stadium. Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill announced that the U.S. Department...
Swiss Re Says Global Insured Catastrophe Losses Will Hit $136B in 2017
Dec 20 2017 // Swiss Re AG estimates that global insured losses from catastrophes in 2017 will hit $136 billion, the third-highest on record for the sector, with the United States hardest hit, it said on Wednesday. Total economic losses...
Catastrophe Bond Managers Put Hurricanes Behind Them, Plan New Launches
Dec 20 2017 // Hedge funds and other managers of catastrophe bond funds racked up some of the worst losses in more than a decade from this year’s hurricanes and wildfires. But a year that is shaping up to be the costliest on record...
House Republicans Eye Disaster Aid, Short-Term Funding Bill
Dec 19 2017 // House Republicans agreed Monday on $81 billion in disaster relief for areas hit by hurricanes and wildfires, the largest standalone aid bill in recent years, according to a document provided by a Republican lawmaker. The...
The Charity Issue: Photos of Giving
Dec 18 2017 // The Keane Insurance Group John Keane, president of The Keane Insurance Group, founded the Keane Charitable Group in 2010 after the earthquake in Haiti. Since then, The Keane Group has raised more than $1 million to build...
California Wildfire Claims Top $9.4B, Department of Insurance Says
Dec 18 2017 // California Commissioner Dave Jones announced in early December that the total of insured losses from the wildfires in California in October had topped $9.4 billion in residential and commercial claims. That figure is near...
Insurance Industry Week of Giving Set Records in Midst of Catastrophes
Dec 18 2017 // Hundreds of volunteers from the insurance industry descended on the National Veterans cemeteries in October in Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth to assist with maintenance and cleanup. Volunteers in Chicago from several...
After the Storms: The Insurance Industry to the Rescue
Dec 18 2017 // When disaster strikes, the insurance industry plays a critical role in helping affected individuals, businesses and communities get back on their feet. After all, an insurance policy is a promise to pay when tragedy and...
The Road to a Rebound After 2017 Storms, Wildfires: Fitch
Dec 18 2017 // U.S. property/casualty insurers will rebound in 2018 from the late-2017 onslaught of hurricanes and wildfires, but it will take a while to return to “significant underwriting profits,” Fitch Ratings predicted...
M4.0 Earthquake Confirmed in Oregon
Dec 15 2017 // An earthquake hit Oregon roughly 40 miles south of Portland near Molalla and was felt by numerous residents in the area, the U.S. Geological Survey confirmed. The USGS reported the magnitude 4.0 earthquake struck about...
Tougher Utility Rules Being Considered in Wake of California Wildfires
Dec 15 2017 // California utilities may face tougher safety rules for power lines, phone lines and utility poles in parts of the state most prone to wildfires. Under the proposed rules being considered by the California Public Utilities...
Winds Kick up Fire Threat from California Wildfires
Dec 15 2017 // Dry, gusting winds are aggravating fire worries across much of central and western California, including those areas where infernos are still raging and places that were scorched in October, the U.S. Storm Prediction...
Farmers Reports $1.2B in Claims from Northern California Wildfires
Dec 15 2017 // Farmers Insurance reported it has received more than 4,000 claims from the Northern California wildfires to date at an estimated gross cost of $1.2 billion. With reinsurance, the Los Angeles-based carrier estimates its...
