Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
RMS Releases Updated N. America Earthquake Models for U.S., Canada & Mexico
Jun 9 2017 // RMS, the Newark, Calif.-based risk modeling and analytics firm, announced the release of version 17.0 of its North America Earthquake Models for the United States, Canada and Mexico. The updated model will enable RMS...
Active Atlantic Hurricane Season Looms – as Odds Drop of El Niño Formation
Jun 9 2017 // Forecasters again lowered the odds of El Niño forming by year’s end, a scenario that may mean more Atlantic hurricanes at a time when federal agencies charged with predicting and responding to natural disasters lack...
After 18 Months, Houston Hurricane Vulnerability Documents Arrive from Feds
Jun 8 2017 // Note: This article originally appeared in the Texas Tribune. Eighteen months ago, the Texas Tribune and ProPublica asked the federal government for some documents. At the time, we were investigating what will happen the...
It’s Hurricane Season! Is Your Customer Ready?
Jun 7 2017 // For the first time in several years, I didn’t get tense because June 1 was coming. In fact, I totally missed June 1 until June 2. I totally forgot about June 1. Oh, right. You may not be thinking about June 1, like I...
National Hurricane Center’s New Weather Advisory Tactic: Storm Prep Deadlines
Jun 7 2017 // Some coastal residents always put off emergency preparations until storm clouds loom on the horizon. The National Hurricane Center is going to try giving those people a deadline this year, issuing experimental advisories...
Nearly 6.9 Million US Homes at Risk of Hurricane Storm Surge Damage
Jun 6 2017 // This post is part of a series sponsored by CoreLogic. Total Reconstruction Cost Value is More Than $1.5 Trillion It’s no surprise that residential homes in the U.S. located along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts are...
USGS Reports Small Earthquake Near Alabama-Georgia Line
Jun 6 2017 // A small earthquake has struck northeastern Alabama near the Georgia line. The U.S. Geological Survey reports that a magnitude 2.6 earthquake occurred Friday morning. The quake was centered in a rural area about 7 miles...
Heritage Insurance Secures $1.7B in Florida Reinsurance Cover for 2017-2018
Jun 6 2017 // Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc., a property and casualty insurance holding company, announced that its insurance subsidiaries, Heritage Property & Casualty Insurance Co. and Zephyr Insurance Co., have completed the...
Excess Capacity Continues to Drive Rate Cuts at June Renewals: JLT Re Report
Jun 5 2017 // Reinsurance rates fell for the sixth consecutive year at the June 1, 2017 renewals, according to a market commentary published by JLT Re. JLT Re cited its Risk-Adjusted Florida Property-Catastrophe (ROL) Index which fell...
Texas Lawmakers Pass ‘Hailstorm’ Litigation Bill
Jun 5 2017 // Legislation backed by the insurance industry and some Texas business groups that curtails the ability of policyholders to sue insurance companies over property claims following extreme weather events passed the state...
P/C Insurers Positioned to Absorb Hurricane Season: Fitch
Jun 2 2017 // The 2017 U.S. hurricane season may be here, but property/casualty insurers should be able to handle the challenges it brings, Fitch Ratings said in a new report. “Fitch currently has a negative sector outlook on the...
Texas Windstorm Insurer: Finances Sound at Start of Hurricane Season
Jun 1 2017 // The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) says it is financially sound and ready for the 2017 hurricane season by once again securing $4.9 billion in total funding. In a media release, TWIA said its 2017 season...
Coastal Texans Concerned About Rising Sea Levels Amid Hurricane Threats
May 31 2017 // Lalo Ojeda has lived with hurricanes all his life. The Houston Chronicle reports he was 14 when Hurricane Carla inundated Galveston Island in 1961. He evacuated as Hurricane Rita barreled toward the coast in 2005, then...
Average 2017 Wildfire Season Predicted for Wyoming
May 31 2017 // State forester Bill Crapser says most of Wyoming is predicted to have slightly below average to average large wildfires this year. Crapser says there could be a lot of wildfires started by lightning but most are not...
Storms Bring Tornadoes, Flash Floods, Evacuations in Midwest
May 26 2017 // Heavy rainfall that sparked flash flooding in Fort Wayne, Ind., forced motorists to flee submerged cars and prompted the evacuation of about 20 homes in the northeastern Indiana city. And in Ohio, authorities say tornadoes...
Pacific Hurricane Season Depends on El Niño: NOAA
May 26 2017 // Forecasters say the central Pacific region around Hawaii can expect a normal or slightly above-average hurricane season, depending largely on the presence of El Niño conditions. Chris Brenchley, director of the National...
NOAA Updates Forecast for Atlantic Hurricane Season, Pacific’s El NIno
May 26 2017 // The Atlantic hurricane season will likely churn out an above-average 11 to 17 named storms, in part due to fading odds than an El Nino will form in the Pacific. Of storms that emerge during the six-month season that begins...
Report: Florida Resident Sparked Wildfire With Lawn Mower
May 26 2017 // A lawn mower is being blamed for sparking a wildfire that destroyed five structures in Florida. The Naples Daily News reports that the state’s Office of Agricultural Law Enforcement concluded its investigation into...
Report: Climate Change to Increase Insured Losses from Windstorms in the U.K.
May 25 2017 // Climate change will drive up wind losses in the U.K. in coming years, according to a recent report from the Association of British Insurers, the Met Office, and Boston, Mass.-based catastrophe modeler AIR Worldwide. The...
Wildfire near Leavenworth, Washington, Forces Evacuations
May 25 2017 // Evacuation orders are still in effect in as crews battle a wildfire north of Leavenworth, Washington. Brendan Cowan, a spokesman for the Northwest Incident Management Team, says the blaze covered about 40 acres as of...
