Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Series Of Small Earthquakes Strikes Southern California
Aug 8 2012 // A series of small earthquakes and aftershocks hit Southern California on Tuesday and Wednesday. A 4.4 magnitude earthquake struck Yorba Linda, Calif. at 11:23 p.m. on Tuesday, with several small aftershocks following. Then...
Recent Oklahoma Wildfires Result in 340 Insurance Claims
Aug 8 2012 // Recent wildfires in Oklahoma have resulted in at least 340 insurance claims statewide, authorities say, but many victims don’t have homeowners insurance. The Oklahoma Insurance Department (OID) said it is working...
Ohio Weather Officials Confirm Weekend Tornado
Aug 8 2012 // Weather officials have confirmed what many residents of a northeastern Ohio town suspected: A tornado touched down there over the weekend. The National Weather Service said severe weather that caused damage to a section of...
China Braces for Another Typhoon; Japan on Alert: AIR Analysis
Aug 8 2012 // According to catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide, residents along coastal cities in eastern China are preparing for their third typhoon in less than a week. Just last weekend, two powerful typhoons—Damrey and...
Philippines Rushes Aid to 850,000 People Affected by Floods
Aug 8 2012 // Emergency workers and troops rushed food, water and clothes to nearly 850,000 people displaced and marooned from deadly floods spawned by 11 straight days of southwest monsoon rains that soaked the Philippine capital and...
UPDATE: Cat I Hurricane Ernesto Nears Mexico, Belize
Aug 8 2012 // According to the latest report from the National Hurricane Center in Miami, the center of category 1 Hurricane Ernesto was about 20 miles, 35 km, north of Chetumal, Mexico and about 160 miles, 260 km, east south east of...
Wildfire Danger In Eastern Washington
Aug 7 2012 // The National Weather Service has issued a red flag warning for critical wildfire danger in Eastern Washington, Eastern Oregon and Northern Idaho. Dry lighting from scattered thunderstorms could ignite dry grass and shrubs....
Deadly Storms Inspire Indiana Shelter Inventors
Aug 7 2012 // When tornadoes tore through southern Indiana and other Midwest states in March, killing at least 13 people and nearly demolishing Henryville, Bob Gray and Steve Clingaman knew they were working on a project worth investing...
TS Ernesto Strengthens; Expected to Impact Belize, Mexico; AIR Analysis
Aug 7 2012 // Tropical Storm Ernesto is gaining strength as it moves west-northwest at around 13 mph, 20 km/h, according to the latest bulletin – 5:00 a.m. EDT – from the National Hurricane Center in Miami. As it moves along...
Insurance Council’s 7th Annual Hurricane Tour Stresses Preparation
Aug 6 2012 // Be prepared. That’s the message insurance agents, National Weather Service meteorologists and a bilingual public affairs spokesperson will bring to Texas coastal residents when they join the Insurance Council of...
Mississippi Law Calling for Hurricane Mitigation Credits Takes Effect
Aug 6 2012 // Mississippi residents along the state’s coastline who are building new homes or chose to strengthen their current homes against hurricane damage can now qualify for premium credits from their property insurer. Under...
UPDATE: TS Ernesto Crossing Caribbean; AIR Analysis
Aug 6 2012 // Tropical Storm Ernesto is continuing along the track forecast by the National Hurricane Center in Miami, as it crosses the southern Caribbean, heading towards Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. The most recent NHC bulletin...
Up Next: California’s Wildfire Season
Aug 6 2012 // With Colorado’s and New Mexico’s record wildfire seasons freshly in mind, some experts are starting to take note that California’s wildfire season is nearing, and with that there are two main points to be...
Report: Insured Losses in Colorado Wildfires Nearly $450 Million
Aug 6 2012 // The two most destructive wildfires in Colorado’s history will cost insurers roughly $450 million, according to a regional insurance association. The massive figure for insured losses comes from the total 600 homes...
Experts Predict High Wildfire Risk In August
Aug 3 2012 // Wildfire experts say states across the West are now at the highest risk of the season for wildfires as hot weather patterns continue to dry out fuels and forests across the region. Ed Delgado at the National Interagency...
Colo. Gov. Hickenlooper Seeks More Federal Wildfire Aid
Aug 3 2012 // Gov. John Hickenlooper is seeking more federal disaster aid for Colorado communities hurt by wildfires, saying they won’t be able to fully recover without it. In late June, President Barack Obama declared a disaster...
CEA Offering Shows Enormous Private Sector Interest in Earthquake Insurance
Aug 3 2012 // The California Earthquake Authority, which has been lobbying Congress to establish a federal backstop to its debt financing, is proving once again that it can do plenty fine on its own. The quasi-public agency just...
Typhoons Saola, Damrey Strike, Philippines, Taiwan, China: AIR Analysis
Aug 3 2012 // According to catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide, Typhoon Saola, the ninth typhoon of the Northwest Pacific storm season, made its first landfall early Thursday morning local time in Hualien, Taiwan. AIR noted that the...
Oklahoma Forester: Wildfire Danger Increases as Drought Persists
Aug 2 2012 // A deepening drought and persistent 100-degree temperatures are turning forests and crops into tinder boxes and increasing the danger of wildfires across the state, Oklahoma’s top forester said. Oklahoma State...
North-Central Nebraska Wildfires 100 Percent Contained
Aug 1 2012 // Authorities kept watch over parched grass and vegetation near the site of three contained wildfires in north-central Nebraska as the fire danger remained high. Firefighter spokeswoman Susan Ford said 100 percent...
