Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Woman High on Drugs and Driving on Wheel Rim Sparked California Wildfires
Aug 30 2016 // Fire officials in southern California say a car driven by a woman high on drugs has sparked several wildfires that so far have burned 450 acres and prompted evacuations. Authorities say Renee Hogan was arrested Sunday. The...
Typhoon Lionrock Expected to Hit Japan’s Tohoku Region, Site of 2011 Tsunami
Aug 29 2016 // Typhoon Lionrock is projected to make landfall in Japan Tuesday and is likely to strike the northern Tohoku region, the area devastated by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami. It would be the first tropical cyclone to...
At Least 12 Tornadoes in Indiana, Ohio Damage Homes, Businesses
Aug 26 2016 // A wave of severe storms produced at least a dozen tornadoes in Indiana and Ohio earlier this week, damaging homes and businesses but causing no serious injuries, authorities said as crews worked to restore power and remove...
Most Italians Uninsured for Earthquake as Economic Cost of Tremblor Mounts
Aug 26 2016 // The magnitude 6.2 earthquake that struck Italy’s Umbria region this week, killing at least 250 people, is estimated to have cost the country anywhere from $1 billion to $11 billion in economy-related losses. The...
Italy Quakes Could Lead to Limited Insured Losses: RMS & AIR Worldwide
Aug 26 2016 // Damage from the earthquake that struck central Italy on Aug. 24 and the subsequent aftershocks that followed is still being assessed. But RMS asserts that insurance losses will be limited because of property values and the...
$352.8M in Damage from July Hailstorm in Colorado
Aug 24 2016 // The July 28 hailstorm that hit Colorado Springs was the sixth-most damaging event in Colorado history. The Gazette reported that according to an insurance industry trade group the storm earned $352.8 million in claims for...
Washington Governor Declares Emergency in 20 Counties in Wake of Wildfires
Aug 24 2016 // Gov. Jay Inslee has declared a state of emergency for 20 Eastern Washington counties in response to multiple wildfires that threaten homes and natural resources. Inslee issued the declaration Tuesday after touring fires in...
Italy Earthquake Unlikely to Trigger 200M Euro Cat Bond Cover: Investors
Aug 24 2016 // A powerful earthquake in Italy on Wednesday is unlikely to force UnipolSai’s 200 million euro ($226 mln) catastrophe bond into default as the bond has low exposure to the affected region, the Italian insurer...
Low Prices Ultimately Could Bite London Market Insurers: A.M. Best, PwC Reports
Aug 24 2016 // The business outlook for the London insurance market is a familiar one across other global markets: underwriting profits are under pressure as ongoing soft market prices begin to take a toll. In separate reports on the...
Oregon Officials Believe Arson Behind 14 Or More Wildfires
Aug 23 2016 // State authorities and forest officials say at least 14 wildfires that have erupted across central Oregon over the last three weeks are believed to have been intentionally started. Officials did not release details on which...
Caribbean Cat Facility, CCRIF, Pays Belize for Excess Rain From Hurricane Earl
Aug 23 2016 // CCRIF SPC (formerly the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility) made a pay-out of US$261,073 to the government of Belize as a result of heavy rains from Hurricane Earl on Aug. 4-5. Rainfall from the hurricane caused...
Soft Prices May Bring Reinsurer Losses when Typical Cat Levels Return: Execs
Aug 23 2016 // It won’t take another Hurricane Katrina for reinsurers to face losses from covering the cost of storms and earthquakes. Competitors such as hedge funds have eroded prices so much that a typical year of claims could...
Tornado Causes Property Damage in Michigan but No Injuries or Deaths
Aug 22 2016 // A storm that appeared to spawn at least one tornado slammed parts of western Michigan on Saturday, causing extensive damage but no injuries or loss of life, authorities said. State Police spokesman Dale Hinz said damage...
Typhoon Mindulle Batters Tokyo, Bringing Risk of Floods and Landslides
Aug 22 2016 // Tokyo was pummeled by rain and winds as Mindulle became the first typhoon to make landfall near the metropolitan region in 11 years on Monday, bringing the risk of floods and landslides. The typhoon’s center was...
Oregon University Confidently Building $50M Center in Tsunami Zone
Aug 22 2016 // Oregon State University is moving ahead with plans to build a $50 million expansion to house its marine science initiative in a tsunami inundation zone in Newport despite warnings from a state geologist that the site could...
Monstrous Southern California Wildfire Displaces More than 80,000
Aug 18 2016 // It tore through canyons and flew over ridges in every direction with astonishing speed, sending flames 80 feet skyward and forcing tens of thousands to flee their homes. The Southern California wildfire that began as a...
Natural Catastrophes Drive Global Insured Losses to $31B in H1: Swiss Re’s Sigma
Aug 18 2016 // Global insured losses from natural catastrophes and man-made disasters during the first half of 2016 reached US$31 billion, or 44 percent of total economic losses of US$71 billion, according to a report issued by Swiss...
Tropical Storm Fiona, 6th Storm of 2016, Forms in Central Tropical Atlantic
Aug 18 2016 // Tropical Storm Fiona, which formed more than 900 miles west of the Cape Verde Islands, is forecast to track across the open Atlantic for at least the next five days, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. Fiona, the...
South Carolina Approves Updated RMS North Atlantic Hurricane Models
Aug 18 2016 // Versions of global catastrophe risk management firm RMS’ North Atlantic Hurricane Models have been approved by South Carolina’s Department of Insurance for the purpose of residential rate filings. Approval for...
Oklahoma Geological Survey Studying Injection Well/Earthquake Connection
Aug 17 2016 // The Oklahoma Geological Survey is studying the relationship between seismic activity and wastewater injection wells with a survey in the Arbuckle formation. Sensors will be placed into several injection wells in the...
