Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
As Gustav Winds Down, New Orleans Eyes Damage
Sep 2 2008 // A still-largely deserted New Orleans Tuesday prepared to take stock of damage from Hurricane Gustav after rebuilt levees appeared to hold off a repeat of the flooding caused by Katrina three years earlier. Gustav roared...
Gustav Impact Limited But Losses from Moderate Catastrophes Add Up
Sep 2 2008 // Gustav may not wallop the property/casualty insurance industry the way Katrina did but there is still concern in insurance and reinsurance circles over the continued pile-up of catastrophe losses. Standard &...
U.S. Chemical Makers Report Minimal Hurricane Gustav Damage
Sep 2 2008 // Major chemical makers in the U.S. said Tuesday that initial inspections indicate only slight damage to those facilities that were affected by Hurricane Gustav, but companies are still uncertain about when production is...
Estimate of Insured Losses from Gustav Between $2 and $4.5 Billion
Sep 2 2008 // One risk modeling firm estimates that insured losses to onshore properties in the U.S. are between $2 billion and $4.5 billion, with an expected loss of $3 billion due to Hurricane Gustav. According to AIR Worldwide...
Fire Crews Respond to Wildfire South of Lake Tahoe
Sep 2 2008 // Fire crews are battling a fast-moving wildfire that broke out Sunday afternoon south of Lake Tahoe and that has forced the evacuation of campgrounds, resorts and homes in the area. Fire information officer Mark Struble...
Hanna and Her Siblings Roil the Atlantic
Sep 2 2008 // Although Gustav is slowly blowing itself out over Oklahoma, Miami’s National Hurricane Center still has a lot of work to do. Its currently tracking a hurricane, a tropical storm, a tropical depression and two...
Cat Bonds Buck Credit Crunch Says S&P Report
Sep 2 2008 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services has released findings, which show that ‘natural catastrophe bonds (‘nat cats’) have proven generally resilient during the capital market’s turbulence...
Earthquake Expert Warns of Economic Damage
Sep 1 2008 // From cracked oil and natural gas pipelines to contaminated public water supplies, the nation’s economy could be the biggest casualty of the next major Midwest earthquake, an earthquake expert warned. Geologic...
Tropical Storm Fay’s Four Landfalls in Florida Sets Record
Sep 1 2008 // Tropical Storm Fay made a record four landfalls on the northern Gulf Coast last month, drenching and damaging communities, crops, homes and businesses across the Florida peninsula. Gov. Charlie Crist received a major...
Hurricanes and Tropical Storms: 2 Down, How Many More to Go?
Sep 1 2008 // With hurricane season halfway over for 2008, Louisiana has so far dodged the bullet but Texas has taken on two warning shots with Hurricane Dolly and Tropical Storm Edouard. As such storms go, neither packed a lot of...
Hope for the Best, Prepare for the Worst
Sep 1 2008 // During the 2008 hurricane season, Texas has so far been hit by Hurricane Dolly and Tropical Storm Edouard. The Louisiana coastline, however, has been spared. That state even dodged massive flooding from Tropical Storm Fay...
Montana Fire Suppression Efforts Expected to Grow
Sep 1 2008 // Residential development is adding to the costs of fighting wildfires in Montana, with a recent study showing that most years federal, state, tribal and county governments spend millions of dollars suppressing wildfires and...
Fireman’s Fund Introduces Wildfire Readiness Program
Aug 29 2008 // Now in the critical months of wildfire season, Novato, Calif.-based Fireman’s Fund is introducing a, comprehensive, prevention-focused program for homeowners. The Wildfire Readiness Program was developed in...
RMS, AIR Tracking Gustav
Aug 29 2008 // “Gustav looks set to make landfall early next week as it continues to intensify along its path. Forecasts suggest that it will strike on the US Gulf coast on Tuesday morning, potentially as a category 2 or 3...
New Orleans Remembers 3rd Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina
Aug 29 2008 // According to the office of the mayor, the city of New Orleans has revised its schedule of events commemorating the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina today, Friday, Aug.29 due to the threat and ongoing preparation for...
Killer Storm Gustav Gains Strength; Could Threaten U.S. Gulf Coast
Aug 28 2008 // After causing more than 20 deaths in Haiti, Tropical Storm Gustav is now heading for Cuba, Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. The latest update from Miami’s National Hurricane Center indicates that Gustav is gaining...
Oil Industry Battens Down As Gustav Threatens Gulf
Aug 28 2008 // Oil companies ramped up preparations to evacuate some facilities as Hurricane Gustav made its way toward the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, becoming a potential threat to the region’s extensive oil and natural gas...
Louisiana Keeping Eye on Gustav; New Orleans Mulls Evacuation
Aug 28 2008 // Three years after Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Louisiana coast, New Orleans residents Wednesday again faced the prospect of an evacuation as Tropical Storm Gustav loomed. Not since Katrina and Hurricane Rita, which...
Forecasters Warn Gustav Could be Major Hurricane When It Reaches Gulf States Monday
Aug 28 2008 // Tropical Storm Gustav shifted course slightly on Thursday morning and moved toward the Jamaica, and forecasters predicted it would be a powerful hurricane by the time it reaches the Gulf of Mexico. “The re-formation...
Gustav Weakens over Haiti
Aug 27 2008 // Gustav has weakened to tropical storm strength as it passes over western Haiti, reported Miami’s National Hurricane Center. However, the Jamaican government has issued a tropical storm warning for the island and a...
