Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Tornadoes Raise Home Insurance Rates in Missouri
Apr 3 2012 // Even Missouri residents who lived nowhere near last year’s deadly tornadoes are writing bigger checks to insure their homes. The state Department of Insurance reports that premiums increased 5 percent between July...
Kentucky Tornado Tax Relief Bill Gets Final Passage
Apr 3 2012 // Tornado victims in 21 Kentucky counties that were declared disaster areas by President Obama after the March 2 tornadoes would get a sales tax break on materials they purchase for rebuilding their houses or other...
Michigan Catastrophic Injury Premium to Go to $175 Per Car
Apr 2 2012 // Michigan drivers will pay $30 more for auto insurance starting July 1 to care for accident victims who have brain damage, paralysis or other catastrophic injuries, raising the annual fee to $175 per vehicle. The Michigan...
Colorado Wildfire Nearing Full Containment
Mar 31 2012 // A blaze that may have been sparked by a prescribed burn conducted by the Colorado State Forest Service and ignited by high winds on Monday is now at 90 percent containment, the Forest Service said Saturday afternoon. The...
Virginia Officials Urge Earthquake Insurance Check
Mar 31 2012 // State officials are reminding homeowners to review their insurance policies to see if they have earthquake insurance ahead of a new law that will require better disclosure if policies exclude such coverage. The State...
Alert Level Raised For Remote Alaska Volcano
Mar 30 2012 // The alert level for a remote Alaska volcano has been raised again after scientists found another lava dome has formed in the crater in the last week. The Alaska Volcano Observatory on Wednesday increased the level for...
Some Progress Made On Colorado Wildfire
Mar 29 2012 // Firefighters are making progress on a wildfire in Colorado that has now consumed an estimated 4,140 acres, destroyed 27 structures and caused the deaths of at least two people, according to the Colorado State Forest...
New Mexico Governor Urges Wildfire Prevention
Mar 29 2012 // Gov. Susana Martinez says conditions are in place for another difficult fire season in New Mexico. The governor kicked off Wildfire Awareness Week on Tuesday by urging residents to be prepared and do their part to prevent...
Nix the Tape on Home Windows, Say Hurricane Officials
Mar 29 2012 // Officials with the National Hurricane Center had a message this week for residents living in hurricane-prone areas: Don’t tape your windows. Center officials are joining with a consumer advocate group at the National...
Alabama Insurance Commission Backs Catastrophe Savings Accounts
Mar 29 2012 // A commission put together by Gov. Robert Bentley has made its first recommendations about the availability and affordability of homeowners’ insurance. The Affordable Homeowners Insurance Commission said it decided to...
Lloyd’s Posts $822 Million Overall Loss for 2011
Mar 28 2012 // The loss, announced today by Lloyd’s of London, shows just how severe the second costliest year for catastrophes on record for the insurance industry actually was. Lloyd’s announced a loss of £516 million...
$370 Billion Econ. Losses for 2011; $116 Billion Insured, Says Swiss Re
Mar 28 2012 // Although everyone is more or less aware that 2011 was a very bad year for losses from natural catastrophes, the figures compiled by Swiss Re evince just how bad they actually were. In its latest sigma study the reinsurer...
FEMA Director: Private Sector Needs ‘Seat at the Table’ in Disaster Response
Mar 28 2012 // The private sector should be engaged early and often in preparing for and responding to natural disasters like hurricanes, the top U.S. emergency management official says. Craig Fugate, administrator of the Federal...
It’s Tsunami Preparedness Week, Now Go Sell a Policy
Mar 27 2012 // It’s Tsunami Preparedness Week, and that means states that border the Pacific Ocean may be hearing more buzz about the rare but deadly act of nature that poses catastrophic risks to coastal regions. If you’re...
Agents Inundated with Customer Calls Following Texas Wildfires
Mar 27 2012 // When wildfires began breaking out across Texas last year in April, homeowners began contacting their insurance agents about their coverage or in some cases lack of coverage. Agents located near many of the fires were...
AIR Analyzes Chile Quake: No Tsunami; Minimal Damages Reported
Mar 27 2012 // Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide’s report on the earthquake that struck central Chile on Sunday night concludes that, although the quake was a strong tremor – magnitude 7.1 – minimal damages are expected,...
Alabama Has Not Yet Addressed Home Insurance Costs, Availability
Mar 26 2012 // Gov. Robert Bentley has not yet kept a campaign promise he made in 2010 to have the Legislature address the rising cost and declining availability of homeowners’ insurance in Alabama. Almost a year has passed since...
Kentucky Lawmakers Working on Tax Break for Tornado Victims
Mar 21 2012 // Leaders of both parties in the Kentucky Legislature are working together to provide sales tax relief to residents of the 21 counties declared disaster areas by President Barack Obama following March 2 tornadoes. Rep. John...
Tornadoes Injured at Least 8 in San Antonio Area
Mar 21 2012 // Officials say at least two tornadoes in the San Antonio area on March 20 damaged about 30 structures and injured at least eight people. Medina County Judge Jim Barden said that four people were hospitalized after the...
Michigan Fire Chief: 207 Homes Damaged by Tornado
Mar 21 2012 // Officials now say 207 homes were damaged in last week’s tornado in Dexter, Mich., and about 20 will need to be demolished. Dexter Area Fire Chief Loren Yates provided the figures on March 19. Officials initially said...
