Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Insurance Industry Tallies Irma’s Mounting Losses in Florida
Sep 22 2017 // With two Florida landfalls in the same day, Hurricane Irma‘s destructive wind and flood damage could cost up to $65 billion for both insured and uninsured losses, according to a recent estimate by...
Insurance Industry Foundation Opens Charity Fund for Hurricane Irma Victims
Sep 21 2017 // The Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF), a nonprofit organization for insurance industry charitable giving, has launched a new disaster relief fund to assist the millions affected by the catastrophic damage of...
East Coast Watching Effect of ‘Zombie’ Storm Jose on Maria’s Path
Sep 21 2017 // Hurricane Maria continued its thunderous roll northward as forecasters struggled to pin down a trajectory. Whether the storm makes landfall again could be determined by a zombie. That’s what former Hurricane Jose...
Global Reinsurers Face Exposures to Mexico City Earthquake: Morgan Stanley
Sep 21 2017 // Global reinsurers will likely face exposures from a massive magnitude 7.1 earthquake that struck Mexico City on Sept. 19, Morgan Stanley said in a new research note. This earthquake led to dozens of deaths and the toppling...
Talanx Warns 2017 Profits Could Be Hit by Hannover Re’s Catastrophe Claims
Sep 21 2017 // German insurer Talanx warned it may miss its profit target for 2017 as its reinsurer, Hannover Re, is being hit by major claims from a series of hurricanes and an earthquake in Mexico. Reinsurers face big losses from...
States Need Better Protections for Insurance Consumers in Natural Disasters: Rutgers Report
Sep 21 2017 // As homeowners continue to file insurance claims in the wake of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, a research report released by the Rutgers Center for Risk and Responsibility at the Rutgers Law School in Camden, N.J., suggests...
Fitch: Hurricane Irma Losses Substantial, But Won’t Weaken Insurer Ratings
Sep 21 2017 // Estimated insured losses for the insurance industry for Hurricane Irma range from $25 to $50 billion based on various loss estimates, according to a report from Fitch Ratings. The ratings agency said these losses will...
Hurricane Maria Carves Path of Destruction Through Puerto Rico
Sep 20 2017 // Hurricane Maria, the strongest storm to strike Puerto Rico in nearly 90 years, carved a path of destruction through the U.S. territory on Wednesday, causing widespread flooding and knocking power out across the island...
After the Storm: Insurance Agents E&O Lessons Learned
Sep 20 2017 // Editor’s Note: This is a republication of a January, 2013 article by Sally Coombs, who was then with Fireman’s Fund Insurance Co, which is now integrated into Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty...
Small Earthquake in Illinois Felt in 3 States
Sep 20 2017 // The U.S. Geological Survey reports that a small earthquake in southeastern Illinois was felt across parts of Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky. The USGS says the preliminary 3.8-magnitude earthquake occurred at 6:47 a.m....
FEMA Not Relying on Trailers to House Hurricane Victims
Sep 20 2017 // The hurricanes that battered Texas and Florida have likely spawned the worst disaster-created housing crisis since Hurricane Katrina left hundreds of thousands of Gulf Coast residents without homes more than a decade...
A.M. Best Warns on Hurricane Maria Impact on Caribbean/Puerto Rican Insurers
Sep 20 2017 // Many insurers and reinsurers in the Caribbean and in Puerto Rico will be tested as they brace for Hurricane Maria, the second hurricane to hit the region in two weeks, according to ratings agency A.M. Best. Hurricane Maria...
New York State Prepares Long Island for Hurricane Jose’s Impact
Sep 20 2017 // New York state officials have deployed members of the National Guard and specialized emergency response units to Long Island to prepare for potentially severe weather caused by Hurricane Jose. Gov. Andrew Cuomo says 100...
Most Produce Farmers Hit by Recent Hurricanes Not Covered by Federal Crop Insurance
Sep 20 2017 // In the U.S, government-backed insurance plans help compensate farmers for losses after natural disasters. Unfortunately for the produce growers that were ravaged by recent hurricanes, a lot of the nation’s vegetable...
Category 4 Hurricane Maria Barrels Into Puerto Rico
Sep 20 2017 // Hurricane Maria slammed into southeastern Puerto Rico as a Category 4 storm with the potential to inflict $30 billion in damages just two weeks after Irma ravaged the cash-strapped island. Top winds reached 155 miles (249...
Search for Survivors Underway after Mexico Earthquake; Hundreds Killed
Sep 20 2017 // Mexican search and rescue teams worked through the night after an earthquake rocked one of the world’s largest urban centers, killing hundreds and reducing buildings to rubble. Military police, paramedics and...
Do You Remember Before You Knew Insurance?
Sep 20 2017 // When Hurricane Andrew made landfall in August 1992, I was a young soldier. To be honest, I was much more interested in my young Army career than a hurricane. When Hurricane Katrina made landfall in August 2005, I had just...
Rain and Snow Help Montana Wildfires But Won’t End Season
Sep 19 2017 // Rain snow and cold have replaced heat and smoke after about two dry months on Montana’s fire lines, leaving crews scrambling for extra sleeping bags, heaters, coats and long underwear. While the change in weather is...
M5.1 Quake Rattles Alaska
Sep 19 2017 // A Magnitude 5.1 earthquake shook Alaska about 135 miles northwest of the state’s capital city Juneau, the Alaska Earthquake Center confirmed. Coincidentally, the City and Borough of Juneau’s Disaster...
What If an Irma-Like Hurricane Hit the New York City Metro Area?
Sep 19 2017 // It sounds like a Hollywood disaster movie. A Category 5 hurricane churning in the mid-Atlantic suddenly veers northwest – and heads straight for New York City. The good news is that, for now, experts agree a Cat...
