Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Southern U.S., Caribbean Islands Brace for Hurricane Irma
Sep 4 2017 // Hurricane Irma, barreling toward the Caribbean and the southern United States, was upgraded to a powerful Category 4 storm on Monday as islands in its path braced for a possible onslaught. Hurricane advisories were issued...
Insured Loss Estimates from Harvey Will Take Time
Sep 4 2017 // Flood losses from Hurricane Harvey, which made landfall as a Category 4 storm late on Aug. 25 near Rockport, Texas, are expected to vastly outnumber those from wind but that doesn’t mean property losses will be...
Official Blames Humans for Utah’s Wildfire Cost Doubling
Sep 4 2017 // Utah State Forester Brian Cottam said “stupid human tricks” have led to the states’ wildfire bill being double what it usually is. Cottam says the cost to Utah for this year’s wildfires is projected...
Lessons Learned from Hurricane Andrew
Sep 4 2017 // How the Insurance Industry Can Mitigate the Next Big Natural Disaster As an industry, we knew there could be large and costly hurricanes. We witnessed the destruction that Category 5 Hugo wrought on the Carolinas in 1989....
Declarations
Sep 4 2017 // Campus Guns “College campuses as gun-free zones present an environment where murderers, rapists and other criminals may commit crimes without fear of being harmed by their victims.” — An NRA lobbyist who...
25 Years Later: How Florida’s Insurance Industry Has Changed Since Hurricane Andrew
Sep 4 2017 // Aug. 24, 1992 was anything but a typical Monday for Robert Reynolds as he drove through debris-filled roads and devastation on the way to his family-run agency then located just north of Homestead, Fla. Hurricane Andrew...
Failed Communications Impacted Tennessee Wildfire Response
Sep 4 2017 // Records show failed communication systems hampered the response to last fall’s deadly Tennessee fires. Records that Sevier County began to release in August show that wind and fire on Nov. 28 combined to disable cell...
Devastating S. Asia Floods Kill 1,400, Expose Lack of State Planning for Monsoons
Sep 1 2017 // The most devastating floods to hit South Asia in a decade have killed more than 1,400 people and focused attention on the poor planning and lack of preparedness for annual monsoon rains, as authorities struggle to get aid...
As Harvey Winds Down, Hurricane Irma Waiting in Wings
Sep 1 2017 // Hurricane Harvey has left major devastation in Texas, but there is another hurricane called Irma out in the Atlantic that could take aim at the United States within the next week or so. Irma became a hurricane early on...
4,500 Evacuated as Oregon Wildfires Burn
Aug 31 2017 // Wildfires in Oregon are burning an area roughly equivalent to half the state of Rhode Island, affecting air quality throughout the state and forcing the evacuations of more than 4,500 people, fire authorities said on Aug....
Man Arrested, Suspected of Igniting Fire Near Hard-Hit California Town
Aug 31 2017 // Authorities on Aug. 30 arrested a man suspected of starting an illegal campfire believed to have ignited a growing Northern California blaze that destroyed 10 homes, damaged five others and threatened hundreds more. The...
Small Earthquake Hits Near Subdivision on Hawaii’s Big Island
Aug 31 2017 // A magnitude 3.8 earthquake has struck the island of Hawaii. The U.S. Geological Survey says the earthquake hit at 3:52 p.m. Tuesday. Its epicenter was about 6 miles (9.7 kilometers) northeast of Hawaii Ocean View Estates,...
Montana Town Threatened by Wildfire; Hundreds Evacuate
Aug 31 2017 // Authorities in Montana ordered the evacuation of nearly 600 homes after a fire burning on a mountain ridge suddenly changed direction and threatened a popular destination for boaters, anglers and hikers. The fire near...
India’s Financial Hub Paralyzed by Torrential Monsoon Rains; Death Toll Rises
Aug 31 2017 // Two toddlers were among 14 people killed in Mumbai after floods caused by heavy monsoon rains destroyed homes and disrupted traffic in India’s financial capital, police said, but lighter-than-feared rain on Wednesday...
Climate Change and Hurricanes – The Worst Is Yet to Come
Aug 31 2017 // How powerful would Hurricane Harvey have been in 1880? How much stronger might it be in 2100? A single Hurricane Harvey has been more than anyone can bear. But to better prepare cities for future storms, researchers are...
Update: Claims Teams Begin Handling Onslaught of Harvey Claims
Aug 31 2017 // Hurricane Harvey has set a U.S record, according to the National Weather Service, dumping 51.88 inches of rain in parts of Texas. As the tropical storm moves over southern Louisiana, claims catastrophe teams are moving in...
Tallying Massive Costs of Harvey to Victims, Insurers, Taxpayers and Economy
Aug 31 2017 // Hurricane Harvey’s costs to the victims in its path, to U.S. taxpayers, to insurers and to the economy were still being calculated on Wednesday, with few firm estimates available yet. Texas could need more than $125...
Law’s Ambiguity a Source of Mixed Messages Over Texas Cat Claims Statute
Aug 30 2017 // Ambiguity surrounding a Texas law that goes into effect on Sept. 1 has insurance industry representatives and attorneys who represent insurance policyholders sending conflicting messages to insureds who may have suffered...
Harvey Bears Down on Louisiana as Flooding Paralyzes Houston
Aug 30 2017 // Tropical Storm Harvey bore down on Louisiana on Wednesday, pouring down more water after setting rainfall records in Texas that caused catastrophic flooding and paralyzed the U.S. energy hub of Houston. The storm that...
Oregon Wildfires Have Cost Taxpayers More Than $100M in 2017
Aug 30 2017 // Oregon wildfires already have burned nearly 500 square miles this year, as one of the state’s many multimillion-dollar forest fires this season smolders and flares away. The Register-Guard reported the blaze, started...
