Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
California’s Drought Is Over, but a New Report Shows Wildfire Risk is High for Millions
Jul 18 2017 // California’s drought-ridden feet aren’t out of the proverbial fire yet. This years’ powerful winter storms ended perpetual discourse about the state’s multiyear drought, but there are still 4.5...
2 New California Wildfires Prompt Evacuation Orders
Jul 18 2017 // A wildfire burning in central California tripled in size Monday, forcing more people from their homes as firefighters battle the day-old blaze. The fire is burning near Lake McClure, a reservoir about 50 miles east of...
British Columbia’s Wildfires Threaten Lumber Supplies, Force Mine Closures
Jul 18 2017 // Wildfires sweeping across British Columbia, the world’s biggest exporter of softwood lumber, sent timber prices surging and forced the closure of two copper mines in the western Canadian province. More than 375 fires...
Earthquakes Rumble Central Oklahoma
Jul 17 2017 // The U.S. Geological Survey says several earthquakes struck central Oklahoma in the morning on July 14, including one with a preliminary magnitude of 4.2. State and local emergency management officials said there have been...
Costs for Fighting Utah Wildfire Reached Nearly $34M
Jul 17 2017 // The cost of fighting a southern Utah wildfire that forced hundreds of people to evacuate has reached nearly $34 million. Fire spokeswoman Julie Thomas said the tab for fighting the blaze near the Utah ski town of Brian...
Small Tornado Confirmed in Southeastern Arizona
Jul 17 2017 // The National Weather Service confirmed a small tornado has touched down in southeastern Arizona. Meteorologists confirmed the sighting through images on social media after issuing a tornado warning for the Picacho Peak and...
Wyoming Wildfire Caused by Lightning, Investigators Say
Jul 13 2017 // Investigators have determined that lightning ignited a wildfire that has burned about 3 square miles of timber in southeast Wyoming. The fire burning in the Keystone area of Medicine Bow National Forest began July 3. After...
As California Wildfire Wanes, Evacuees Return and Damage is Measured
Jul 13 2017 // Relief was arriving after a rough stretch of wildfires all around the U.S. West, with firefighters slowly surrounding once-fierce blazes and evacuees starting to stream back home. Authorities surveying the damage from a...
Windstorm Egon’s Insurance Loss Estimate Rises to US$314.7M: PERILS
Jul 13 2017 // The estimated property insurance losses for Windstorm Egon, which hit France and Germany on Jan. 12-13, 2017, have been revised upwards to €275 million ($314.7 million) by PERILS AG, the independent Zurich-based company...
California Wildfires Feeding on Grass Fed by Winter Rain
Jul 12 2017 // Wildfires driving people from their homes in California and throughout the West have had help from an unlikely source: the rain. Major winter downpours that pulled the state out of years of drought also brought a layer of...
RMS Launches New Models for Tropical Cyclone & Earthquake in Asia Pacific
Jul 12 2017 // RMS, the Newark, Calif.-based risk modeling and analytics firm, has introduced typhoon models for wind and flood for South Korea and Taiwan, plus four new earthquake models for Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and...
300-Plus Canadian Wildfires Force Closures of Lumber Mills, Natural Gas Facility
Jul 12 2017 // More than 300 wildfires in British Columbia have forced Canadian lumber mills and an Enbridge Inc. natural gas compressor station to shut as hot, dry weather fans blazes across swaths of western Canada and the...
Northern California Wildfire Destroys 37 Structures
Jul 11 2017 // A Northern California wildfire has destroyed 37 structures, at least some of them homes. The figure is up from 17 destroyed structures previously reported by state fire officials. However, the blaze weakened significantly...
Earthquake Center Confirms 2 Quakes Hit Alaska
Jul 11 2017 // Two small earthquakes have hit Alaska, one on the state’s northern end and another in the south, the Alaska Earthquake Center confirmed. The center says a magnitude 3.6 earthquake struck a spot 64.3 miles northeast...
Report: The Southeast’s Storm Surge Risk and Florida’s Hurricane Wake-Up Call
Jul 11 2017 // The Southeast has seen its fair share of natural disasters and flooding in the last several years, including two hurricanes in Florida last year – the first hurricanes to hit the state in more than a decade. But none of...
California Blazes Among Numerous Wildfires in Western U.S.
Jul 10 2017 // Two major wildfires in California that have forced nearly 8,000 people out of their homes are among numerous fires in the Western U.S. that have barreled across the baking landscape, destroying property. About 4,000 people...
June Catastrophes Cost Global Economy $5 Billion; U.S. Storms Dominate: Aon
Jul 10 2017 // Floods and storms cost the global economy more than $5 billion in June, with most of those losses generated in the United States, according to an Aon catastrophe report. In the U.S., large hail, tornadoes, straight-line...
Many Homeowners Don’t Understand Deductibles
Jul 10 2017 // Almost five years after Superstorm Sandy, one third of homeowners in several coastal states are still unaware of hurricane deductibles and how they work, new insurance research has found. Not only did 33 percent of...
Swiss Re, Ping An Offer China’s 1st Mobile-Enabled Parametric Insurance Cover
Jul 7 2017 // Swiss Re has partnered with Ping An Property & Casualty Insurance Co. of China Ltd. to launch China’s first mobile-enabled typhoon property parametric insurance solution. This solution is designed to provide an...
Arizona Prepping for Floods in Wake of Massive Wildfire
Jul 6 2017 // A northern Arizona wildfire is nearing full containment and officials say it’s time to take precautions against possible post-fire flooding. Officials say there’s a high risk of flooding during the monsoon, and...
