Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
New U.S. Satellite Aims to Unlock Mysteries of Hurricanes
Aug 20 2015 // Hurricanes hold lots of secrets. Unlocking them can help forecasters predict the next steps the deadly storms will take. That, in turn, will help improve computer forecast models and give meteorologists a better...
Texas Extends Deadline in Windstorm Insurance Board Search
Aug 19 2015 // The Texas Department of Insurance is extending its deadline for accepting applications for the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association board to September 1. The original deadline for applications was Aug. 15. The board is...
10 Years After Katrina, Coastal Cities Face Greater Flood Risk: RMS
Aug 19 2015 // A decade after Hurricane Katrina caused $41 billion in property/casualty insurance losses, the most expensive catastrophe for the global insurance industry, rising sea levels are driving up expected economic and insurance...
Tropical Storm Danny to Become Hurricane? Maybe, Maybe Not
Aug 19 2015 // A storm-free August in the Atlantic was probably too much to ask for. Tropical Storm Danny formed out of a cluster of thunderstorms Tuesday about 1,600 miles (2,600 kilometers) east of the Windward Islands. There’s...
S&P: ILS Investors Could Get Burned as Covered Perils Expand, Terms Widen
Aug 19 2015 // The catastrophe bond market will continue to grow by 10 to 20 percent per year, driven in part by the increase in covered perils and the broadening of event definitions, according to a report published by Standard &...
Washington Wildfires Remain Threat in Hot, Dry Weather
Aug 18 2015 // Crews continued their battle late Monday with several large fires threatening home in the Chelan area in central Washington. The blazes have destroyed more than 50 structures, forced about 1,500 residents to flee and...
Small Earthquake Jolts Northern California
Aug 18 2015 // A short sharp earthquake rattled California’s San Francisco Bay Area, but there are no reports of injuries. The U.S. Geological Survey said the 4.0 magnitude quake struck Monday and was centered just north of...
California Earthquake Authority Prepares to Go into ‘Hyperspace’
Aug 18 2015 // The California Earthquake Authority – the state’s quasi-public earthquake insurance pool – long has had a problem with take-up. Only about 10 percent of homeowners in this most seismically active state actually...
Typhoons Goni & Atsani Moving Toward Taiwan, Japan, Korea: AccuWeather Report
Aug 18 2015 // The AccuWeather Global Weather Center reports that two typhoons, currently located in the Eastern Pacific Ocean will strengthen further in the coming days, as one or both could become super typhoons. Typhoon Goni battered...
Fracking Drives NAIC Earthquake Conversation
Aug 17 2015 // Hydraulic fracturing – the process of extracting oil and gas resources that requires breaking rock through the high-pressured injection of liquid into the ground, popularly known as “fracking” – has caused...
Regulator: Missouri Now Has $100B in Property Uninsured for Quakes
Aug 17 2015 // Angela Nelson, director of the Division of Market Regulation for the Missouri Department of Insurance, said the state now faces an earthquake coverage crisis and that the value of uninsured residential property in the...
Arab Bank Settles Terrorism Financing Claims by U.S. Citizens
Aug 17 2015 // Arab Bank Plc has agreed to settle litigation brought by hundreds of Americans who accused it of facilitating militant attacks in Israel, nearly a year after a U.S. jury found the bank liable. The settlement was confirmed...
Officials: Effort to End Oklahoma’s Earthquakes Will Take Time
Aug 17 2015 // It could take up to another year of research to determine what has caused a recent series of Oklahoma earthquakes and whether the state is doing enough to stop them, officials said. After meeting with members of the...
Hurricane Katrina and the Evolution of Risk Management
Aug 17 2015 // Nearly 10 years ago, wind and storm surges as a result of Hurricane Katrina caused $41 billion in insured losses and $108 billion in total economic losses in the United States. Many of the lawsuits filed as a result of the...
California, Pacific Northwest Schools Get $4M for Earthquake Early Warning Systems
Aug 17 2015 // The U.S. Geological Survey has awarded $4 million to four universities in the Pacific Northwest and California to boost the development of earthquake early warning systems. The University of Washington, the University of...
Oregon City Factors Tsunami Threat Into Expansion Plans
Aug 14 2015 // Seaside, Ore. officials have all the checkboxes ready for planning their expansion, public transportation, affordable housing and of course tsunami preparedness. The Daily Astorian reported that the Planning Commission...
UnipolSai, Willis Capital Confirm Italian Cat Bond for Azzurro Re; 1st in Europe
Aug 14 2015 // UnipolSai Assicurazioni S.p.A. (UnipolSai), a multi-business Italian insurance company of the Unipol Group and Willis Capital Markets & Advisory (WCMA) part of Willis Group Holdings plc, have confirmed the...
Nevada Hit by More Than 5,000 Earthquakes in Past Year
Aug 13 2015 // Seismologists say a year-long swarm of earthquakes in northwest Nevada could be linked to volcanic activity. The University of Nevada’s Reno Nevada Seismological Laboratory announced this week that there have been...
CCRIF Members Complete Enhanced Catastrophe Portfolios for 2015-16
Aug 13 2015 // The 16 Caribbean member governments of CCRIF SPC (formerly the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility), the co-operative association that covers risks from natural catastrophes in the region, announced that they...
Deadline for Applying to Texas Windstorm Insurance Board Nears
Aug 12 2015 // The Texas Department of Insurance is accepting applications for the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association board of directors after the makeup of the board was changed by the 84th Legislature. The deadline for applications...
