Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
68 Homes Burned in Central Texas; Wildfire 80% Contained
Oct 22 2015 // Residents forced from their homes by a 7-square-mile Central Texas wildfire have been allowed to return to the evacuation zone — some to return to their homes, some to count their losses. The Texas A&M Forest Service...
Washington Wildfire Disaster Declaration Approved by President
Oct 22 2015 // President Barack Obama has declared a major disaster exists in the state of Washington following this summer’s wildfires and mudslides. The disaster declaration makes federal money available to state and local...
NHC Tracking Hurricane Patricia, as It Nears Mexican Coast
Oct 22 2015 // The National Hurricane Center in Miami is tracking Hurricane Patricia, a storm in the eastern Pacific that is moving towards the west coast of Mexico. According to the NHC’s latest bulletin, Patricia is about 255...
P/C Insurers Posted $31B Profit for 2015 1st Half, Highest 1st-Half Income Since ’07
Oct 21 2015 // Private U.S. property/casualty insurers’ net income after taxes grew to $31.0 billion in the first half of 2015 from $26.0 billion in the first half of 2014, according to a report today from Verisk Analytics’...
Oklahoma Commissioner to Insurers: Clarify Earthquake Coverage
Oct 21 2015 // In response to a growing number of questions from consumers about earthquake coverage, Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John D. Doak has asked property/casualty insurers in the state to send each policyholder a clarifying...
Willis Capital Market Report Finds Decline in ILS Issues as Growth Stabilizes
Oct 21 2015 // According to the latest ILS report from Willis Capital Markets & Advisory (WCMA), part of Willis Group Holdings plc, “$650 million of non-life Rule 144A catastrophe bond capacity was issued across three...
Southeast Missouri Rattled by Small Earthquakes
Oct 20 2015 // A pair of earthquakes hit southeast Missouri on Oct. 16, but there were no reports of damage or injuries. The U.S. Geological Survey said a 3.4-magnitude earthquake, followed 24 minutes later by a 3.2-magnitude aftershock,...
Progress Made Against Central Texas Wildfire
Oct 20 2015 // As of Oct. 19, about 70 percent of a wildfire that has burned thousands of acres in Central Texas had been contained, officials said. Some 275 firefighters were assisted by at least seven aircraft dumping water and fire...
Climate Change Adds Billions to U.S. Hurricane Losses: Study
Oct 20 2015 // Climate change has added billions to the toll of hurricane strikes on the U.S., according to a study that challenges the prevailing scientific view that the rising cost is mainly because more buildings, towns and...
AIR Analyzes Typhoon Koppu’s Heavy Flooding Impact on the Philippines
Oct 20 2015 // A report from catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide highlights “widespread flooding, landslides, wrecked roads and bridges, downed trees, and power outages” in the Philippines in the wake of Typhoon...
Slow Moving Typhoon Koppu Kills 4 in Philippines, Displaces Thousands
Oct 19 2015 // Typhoon Koppu left at least four people dead in the Philippines, shutting schools and government offices, while floods and landslides continue to threaten the nation’s main Luzon Island. The slow-moving and powerful...
Willis Re Unveils ‘Enhanced Approach’ for Catastrophe Risk Exposure
Oct 19 2015 // Willis Re, the reinsurance brokerage division of Willis Group Holdings plc, announced that it has released the “Willis Re View of Catastrophe Risk.” The program offers an “enhanced approach to catastrophe...
Insuring against Terrorism: America’s Post-9/11 Recovery
Oct 19 2015 // In a nation founded on a system of checks and balances – House against Senate, Supreme Court versus the Presidency – gridlock can be a fact of life, especially in peacetime. But in a time of real trouble from...
2 Northern California Wildfires Caused Nearly $2B in Damage
Oct 16 2015 // An insurance company says two massive wildfires that burned up parts of Northern California did nearly $2 billion in damage, among the costliest blazes the Golden State has ever seen. The Sacramento Bee reports that a...
Typhoon Koppu (a.k.a. Lando) to Hit Philippines with Heavy Rainfall Warnings
Oct 16 2015 // Typhoon Koppu is gaining strength and looks likely to deliver heavy rainfall over parts of Luzon in the northern Philippines this weekend and early next week, which may trigger dangerous flooding and mudslides, according...
Proposal for Higher Texas Windstorm Policy Liability Limits Denied
Oct 15 2015 // Texas Insurance Commissioner David Mattax has denied a request by the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) to increase limits of liability for residential and commercial properties it insures along the Texas...
Climate Change Means Wildfire Seasons May Continue: Professor
Oct 15 2015 // The drought-plagued western U.S. has had more than its share of fires this year – but this may not be the last year that the nation sees so many wildfires gone wild. A Yale University professor looking back over the last...
Residents Evacuate as Wildfire Burns in Northwestern Louisiana
Oct 15 2015 // Authorities say a series of wildfires have burned more than two square miles in northwestern Louisiana and threatened homes. Louisiana State Police said in a statement that the fires started Tuesday afternoon in Bienville...
Update: Central Texas Wildfire Now Over 4,000 Acres
Oct 15 2015 // A Central Texas wildfire grew to more than 4,000 acres on Oct. 15, and at least 400 homes have been evacuated according to the Bastrop County Emergency Management Agency. The Texas A&M Forest Service had said the blaze...
Amtrak Sponsors $275M Cat Bond for Northeast Storm Surge, Wind, Quake
Oct 14 2015 // Amtrak is getting $275 million of reinsurance protection from the capital markets for its wholly owned captive, covering storm surge, wind and earthquake perils, according to GC Securities. GC Securities, the capital...
