Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
FEMA Defends Lack of Disaster Declaration Over Texas Wildfires
May 5 2011 // The Federal Emergency Management Agency defended its decision to refuse more assistance for Texas in the wake of devastating wildfires, saying that the state has already received sufficient U.S. government help. Gov. Rick...
Oklahoma Residents Get $1M in Federal Aid After Tornado
May 5 2011 // The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced that more than $1 million in federal aid has been disbursed to Oklahomans recovering from the deadly April 14 tornado that tore through Atoka County. The Oklahoma...
Aon Benfield Analyzes Q1 Cat Bond Performance
May 5 2011 // Aon Benfield Securities, the investment banking subsidiary of Aon Corp., has released its latest Insurance Linked Securities (ILS) report, which examines the key trends in the ILS sector during the first quarter of the...
Damage Estimated in Billions as Insurers Work to Pay Claims
May 4 2011 // Officials, insurers and residents are starting the daunting task of assessing and cleaning up the damage from the massive storm system that hit the Southeast as the amount of insured losses is heading into the billions of...
Nevada Insurance Department Publishes Earthquake Insurance Guide
May 3 2011 // The Nevada Department of Insurance has published a consumer guide to earthquake insurance to encourage residents to evaluate appropriate coverage for their homes and businesses. The state is one of the most active states...
Higher Humidity Readings Aid Texas Wildfire Crews
May 3 2011 // Higher humidity readings in West Texas have given an assist to crew battling wildfires in the arid reaches of West Texas. Federal firefighting team spokeswoman Diane Steltz said no structures were lost or threatened on May...
Lockton Study Finds Recent Catastrophes, Changing Models Affecting Property
May 3 2011 // In a new Market Update report insurance broker Lockton cautions that aftershocks from earthquakes in Asia Pacific and new catastrophe models create an uncertain environment for property insurance buyers. In the report...
RMS Expert Explains Role of ‘Social Network’ in Tracking Down Bin Laden
May 3 2011 // The arcane world of spies, informers, terrorists and the people who have to deal with them remains largely a mystery to most ordinary citizens. But when those efforts produce spectacular results, as in the tracking down...
AIR Worldwide Cat Models Now Cover Industrial and Renewable Energy
May 3 2011 // Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide (AIR) today announced that its Catastrophe Risk Engineering (CRE) models now cover industrial and renewable energy facilities worldwide. Their expansion is “aimed at helping...
Oregon Lawmakers Consider Governance in Disaster
May 2 2011 // Oregon’s Constitution requires that the state Legislature meet in Salem. So what would happen if disaster struck Oregon and lawmakers needed to urgently approve relief funds in a capital city they couldn’t...
Nearly 7,000 Insurance Claims Filed After St. Louis Tornado
May 2 2011 // Missouri insurance regulators say major homeowners and auto insurance companies in the state have received nearly 7,000 claims from St. Louis residents with damage from the April 22 (Good Friday) tornado. The companies...
United Fire Sees Hike in New Business but Drop in Revenues in Q1 2011
May 2 2011 // United Fire & Casualty Co., headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has reported a slight drop in net premiums earned and total revenues for the first quarter of 2011 compared with that of the same quarter in...
Property Rates Expected to Rise From Catastrophes, Revised Cat Model
May 2 2011 // Property insurance rates could be on the rise thanks to first quarter catastrophe losses, including the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, and a revised catastrophe model. During the second quarter, rates for North American...
Weather Service: Deadliest Year for Tornadoes in Virginia
May 2 2011 // Days after a series of tornadoes blew through Virginia, officials still are trying to determine exactly how much damage was done and what to do for those who have lost everything. Initial reports say more than 400 private...
AIR Assesses Catastrophe Risk of Industrial, Renewable Energy Facilities
May 2 2011 // Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide (AIR) has expanded its catastrophe risk engineering services to cover industrial and renewable energy facilities worldwide. AIR said the expansion of its Catastrophe Risk Engineering...
Officials Say Oklahoma Tornado Causing Financial Woes
May 2 2011 // President Barack Obama approved a request by Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin for federal disaster assistance for Atoka County following an April 14 tornado that devastated the town of Tushka. The EF3 tornado cut a swath four...
A Wild and Crazy April
May 2 2011 // The United States has experienced double the number of tornadoes than “normal” during this year’s spring storm season, and the National Weather Service and catastrophe risk experts see no reason for a...
Business Losses Due to ‘Action’ by Civil Authorities: When Is There Coverage?
May 2 2011 // Virtually all insurance policies contain provisions and exclusions dealing with events that most insureds consider so remote and unlikely that they rarely give any thought to their possible occurrence, much less what...
Declarations
May 2 2011 // Preparation a Must “Just because the economy’s horrible doesn’t mean hurricanes stop.” —Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Craig Fugate, stressing how important it is for newly elected...
A Wild and Crazy April
May 2 2011 // The United States has experienced double the number of tornadoes than “normal” during this year’s spring storm season, and the National Weather Service and catastrophe risk experts see no reason for a...
