Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
A Recurrence of Recalls; ‘PIGS’ in a Poke; Lloyd’s Powers on; Haiti Now Faces Floods and Hurricanes
Feb 21 2010 // First Toyota, then Honda – who’s next? 2010 is not starting out as a good year for car companies. Japan’s Toyota Motor Corp. was already in the process of recalling approximately 8 million vehicles, due...
Austin Plane Crash – Intentional Act or Terrorism?
Feb 19 2010 // Austin, Texas, Police Chief Art Acevedo stopped short of calling the crashing of a small plane into a commercial office building in northwest Austin on Feb. 18 a terrorist act, but U.S. Representative Mike McCaul said he...
Abacus Insurance Offers Online Earthquake Deductible Buyback
Feb 18 2010 // Abacus Insurance Brokers, Inc., a Los Angeles-based program manager that distributes specialty insurance products online through www.abacus.net, has launched an online program that enables homeowners to reduce the...
Illinois Officials Recommend Review of Earthquake Insurance
Feb 18 2010 // Insurance regulators in Illinois are encouraging residents to review earthquake insurance policies after a small quake was recorded in the state recently. The 3.8-magnitude earthquake surprised northern Illinoisans Feb....
Lloyd’s Analyzes Lurking Danger of Active Volcanoes
Feb 12 2010 // An article on the Lloyd’s web site (www.lloyds.com) points out that there are “around 1,500 active volcanoes in the world and, although deadly eruptions are rare, they can cause devastation to people and...
Rare Earthquake Rattles Northern Illinois; No Damage Reported
Feb 11 2010 // A small pre-dawn earthquake hit northern Illinois on Feb. 10, startling residents as far away as Michigan and Iowa, but no damage or injuries were immediately reported. The Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS) said the...
El Nino Drowning Texas Wildfire Threat
Feb 9 2010 // Central Texas rancher Debbie Davis can hardly believe the turnaround in rainfall. While her pastures were parched and withered last summer after nearly two years without appreciable rain, the area northwest of San Antonio...
It Figures
Feb 7 2010 // $12 Billion Hurricane Ike, which struck Galveston on Sept. 13, 2008, is so far the costliest weather catastrophe in Texas history, racking up nearly $12 billion in windstorm and flood insurance claims. Windstorm claims in...
Catastrophe Declaration Clears Way for Emergency Adjusters in Oklahoma
Feb 7 2010 // In the wake of massive ice storms that virtually shut down the state of Oklahoma in late January, Insurance Commissioner Kim Holland declared a state of emergency that allows the commissioner to “license as an...
Only 20% of Oregonians Insured for Earthquake Risks
Feb 7 2010 // Although Oregon is among the states at highest risk for a major earthquake, only about 20 percent of Oregonians have earthquake insurance, according to a Department of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS)...
Northern Calif. Earthquake Damage Predicted to Be Less Than $10M
Feb 5 2010 // Damage and loss from yesterday’s magnitude 5.9 earthquake that struck offshore Northern California are expected to be less than $10 million, with insured losses a fraction of that, a risk modeling firm has reported....
Magnitude 5.9 Earthquake Strikes Northern California
Feb 4 2010 // A magnitude 5.9 earthquake has struck offshore Northern California at 12:20 p.m. PST, about 35 miles from Petolia and 50 miles from Eureka, the U.S. Geological Survey reported. This is the second earthquake in the area in...
Hawaii Could Tap Hurricane Fund to Fund School Education
Feb 3 2010 // Hawaii is closer to tapping its Hurricane Relief Fund to help balance the state budget and resolve teacher furloughs, as a legislative committee advanced a bill that would appropriate $50 million from the fund. Senate Bill...
Catastrophe Declaration Clears Way for Emergency Adjusters in Oklahoma
Feb 2 2010 // In the wake of massive ice storms that virtually shut down the state of Oklahoma in late January, Insurance Commissioner Kim Holland has declared a state of emergency that allows the commissioner to “license as an...
Hurricane Ike Claims Total Nearly $12B in Texas
Jan 29 2010 // Hurricane Ike, which struck Galveston on Sept. 13, 2008, has proved to be the costliest weather catastrophe in Texas history by a large margin. The storm racked up nearly $12 billion in windstorm and flood insurance claims...
RMS Analyzes Haiti Earthquake, Regional Repercussions
Jan 29 2010 // Risk Management Solutions has released a report on the impact of the earthquake that struck near the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince on January 12. The 7.0 magnitude quake destroyed much of the city and surrounding...
Texas Agent and Former Windstorm Association Chair Dies at 81
Jan 29 2010 // Corpus Christi independent insurance agent and former Texas Windstorm Insurance Association chairman, Lloyd L. Grove Jr., passed away Jan. 24 at the age of 81. Throughout his 50-year career Grove was actively involved in...
Haitian Government Receives $7.75 Million from CCRIF
Jan 28 2010 // The Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF) has paid the Government of Haiti US $7,753,579 following the Magnitude 7.0 earthquake which struck close to Port-au-Prince on January 12, causing damage of...
Prime Insurance Syndicate, Inc. Jury Verdict Rules in Favor of Insurer in Hurricane Katrina Claim
Jan 27 2010 // Reassured by jury’s unbiased decision Chicago, Illinois and Salt Lake City, Utah (January 27, 2010). Prime Insurance Syndicate, Inc. was successfully defended in a Hurricane Katrina lawsuit in the United States...
Tragedy in Haiti; XL Moves to Ireland; NYC Exchange Doesn’t Worry London; WEF Prepares for Davos
Jan 24 2010 // The tragedy in Haiti is a reminder of how fragile life can be in developing countries.Despite the massive loss of life and widespread destruction in and around the capital Port-au-Prince, vital rescue efforts have been...
