Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Earthquake Shakes Central California
Oct 2 2009 // A series of earthquakes _ the largest a magnitude-5.1 _ have rattled the Lone Pine area of the eastern Sierra in Central California. The largest struck about 18 miles southeast of the town of Lone Pine along the east shore...
Rescuers Continue Digging As Indonesia Earthquake Toll Tops 1,000
Oct 2 2009 // Rescuers dug feverishly on Friday through the rubble of a school and other buildings toppled by an earthquake in the Indonesian port of Padang, but few victims were being found alive two days after the tremor. The United...
Strong Earthquakes Abroad Could Weaken Geologic Faults in U.S.
Oct 2 2009 // Powerful earthquakes may be a trigger for weakening geologic faults a half a world away, U.S. researchers said this week in a study that points to new ways to predict earthquakes. “Earthquakes are caused when a fault...
AIR Analyzes Samoa Quake/Tsunami
Oct 1 2009 // According to catastrophe risk modeling firm AIR Worldwide, an earthquake-triggered tsunami flattened villages, submerged tourist resorts and killed more than 100 people in Samoa, American Samoa and Tonga yesterday morning....
California Jury Orders Large, First-Ever Wildfire Environmental Damages
Oct 1 2009 // A Los Angeles jury Wednesday ordered two construction companies to reimburse the government for $36.5 million in damages from a 2002 wildfire, in the largest such award and the first-ever damages for environmental harm,...
Over 500 Reported Dead in Sumatra Quake; AIR Analyzes Disaster
Oct 1 2009 // Not long after the Samoan earthquake and tsunami struck in the South Pacific, a major earthquake occurred 9500 kms (5900 miles) away off Sumatra in western Indonesia. Latest news bulletins have raised the initial death...
California Wildfire Victims Want Probe
Sep 30 2009 // People affected by the massive wildfire that burned about 250 square miles northeast of Los Angeles are calling for a federal investigation into what they say was a poor initial response to the blaze. Angry residents of...
Typhoon Ketsana Kills 38 in Vietnam; Flood Threat
Sep 30 2009 // The biggest floods in decades threatened Vietnam’s central provinces on Wednesday following a powerful typhoon that swept into the country after wreaking havoc in the Philippines. The government said 38 people had...
Deadly South Pacific Tsunami Kills at Least 100 People after 8.3 Quake
Sep 30 2009 // A huge magnitude 8.3 earthquake in the South Pacific created a series of tsunami waves that struck the islands of Samoa, American Samoa, Tonga and Pago Pago, causing the deaths of at least 100 people, and leaving a swath...
California Wildfires Smolder in Low Wind
Sep 28 2009 // https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/west/2009/09/01/103448.htm All but the most remote sections of a pair of major Southern California wildfires were contained Saturday, but officials warned that dangerous fire weather...
Oregon Mulls Plan for Tsunami Buildings
Sep 28 2009 // Should an earthquake generate a tsunami on the Oregon coast, there might be only 20 minutes to get to high ground. But regional leaders, engineers and scientists plan to gather next week in Cannon Beach and Portland to...
4 Years Later, Texas Housing Agency Says Rita Aid Pace Picking Up
Sep 28 2009 // Hundreds of southeast Texans displaced by Hurricane Rita four years ago are still waiting for new federally funded homes to be built while a state agency tries to spend the housing construction money it has a little...
P/C Industry Net Income Falls Nearly 60% in First-Half 2009
Sep 28 2009 // Private U.S. property/casualty insurers’ net income after taxes fell 59.3 percent to $5.8 billion in first-half 2009 from $14.1 billion in first-half 2008. Insurers’ overall profitability as measured by their...
California Wildfire Evacuees Urged to File Living Expenses
Sep 25 2009 // California Department of Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner reminded residents who have been evacuated due to the Guiberson Fire (Ventura County) that they may be eligible for reimbursement for additional living expenses...
Is Economic Terrorism a Threat to Southeast Asia?
Sep 24 2009 // If the suicide bombers who targeted two luxury hotels in Jakarta this year hoped their attacks would strike a significant long-term blow against Indonesia’s economy, the reaction of financial markets suggests they...
Fugate Brings Florida Ideas to FEMA
Sep 24 2009 // Craig Fugate brought three lessons with him when he took over the Federal Emergency Management Agency: Always be ready for disasters, make sure people take responsibility for themselves and get the message out...
Newest Florida Carrier, Prepared Insurance, Targets ‘Older’ Homes
Sep 23 2009 // Florida has given the go-ahead to a new homeowners insurance company that plans to focus on what it says is the underserved market of homes built before 2002. Prepared Insurance Co., headquartered in Tampa, intends to use...
10 Years Ago, Hurricane Floyd Brought Flooding, Evacuations to Carolinas
Sep 22 2009 // In the dark of night on Sept. 15, 1999, Kelly Andreucci stood on the front porch of his childhood home along Godfrey Avenue and worried about the rain drenching his neighborhood. That night, Hurricane Floyd skirted the...
Hurricane Hugo Today Would Cause $20 Billion in Damage in South Carolina
Sep 22 2009 // Hurricane Hugo was the most costly hurricane ever to hit the United States when it made landfall in South Carolina in 1989, causing $4.2 billion in insured damage. Since then, the total insured property along South...
California Regulators Nix San Diego Utility’s Wildfire Plan
Sep 21 2009 // California regulators soundly rejected a utility company’s plan to cut electricity to a vast swath of San Diego bedroom communities when the weather is ripe for major wildfires. The California Public Utilities...
