Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
The problem of natural disasters
Sep 24 2007 // What to do about natural disasters? We can’t really prevent them and while many people are skeptical about dire predictions regarding climate change as the probable cause of an increase in weather-related...
Citizens Opens Emergency Operations Center For Fla. Tornado Vicitms
Sep 22 2007 // Citizens Property Insurance Corp. has established a mobile emergency operations center in Eustis, Fla., to help homeowners in the area with property damaged by the tornado that struck the area last week. Citizens has about...
AIR Estimates Typhoon Wipha Insured Losses under $250 Million
Sep 21 2007 // AIR Worldwide Corporation estimates insured losses from both wind and precipitation-induced flooding from Typhoon Wipha (See IJ web site Sept. 18, 19) are unlikely to exceed $250 million (RMB 1.85 billion). “The...
EQECAT Releases New Hurricane Model Software
Sep 21 2007 // EQECAT, Inc., a subsidiary of ABSG Consulting Inc., announced the release of its “3.10” catastrophe management software, which includes its next generation model for Atlantic basin hurricanes. “The storms...
House Approves Terrorism Insurance Backstop Extension
Sep 20 2007 // The House of Representative approved by a vote 312-110 H.R. 2761, the Terrorism Risk Insurance Revision and Extension Act of 2007 (TRIREA), legislation that extends and revises the federal terrorism insurance backstop for...
SoCal Wildfires Near Containment, Ahead of Windy Forecast
Sep 20 2007 // Fire crews were bracing for strong winds as they sought to finish surrounding a wildfire that forced hundreds of people to flee this mountaintop community in the San Bernardino National Forest, authorities said. Winds in...
Industry Confident in Terror Reinsurance Renewal Despite White House Veto Threat
Sep 20 2007 // Insurance industry lobbyists are confident there is enough backing in Congress for renewal of the federal terrorism reinsurance program and enough support to override a threatened presidential veto if necessary. The...
Wipha Misses Shanghai; RMS Predicts Some Damage
Sep 19 2007 // Shanghai, China’s financial hub, has been spared the full impact of Typhoon Wipha, as the storm’s center passed around 60 miles (100 kms) to the west of the densely populated area. Wipha weakened substantially...
Bush Signals Veto of Terrorism Reinsurance Program
Sep 18 2007 // The Bush Administration believes that the federal backup for terrorism reinsurance should be phased out in favor of a private market for terrorism insurance and “strongly opposes efforts to expand the federal...
Typhoon Wipha Threatens Shanghai
Sep 18 2007 // Typhoon Wipha, the season’s 13th named storm in the Western Pacific, is on a course to come ashore on the Chinese mainland early Wednesday morning, local time. The storm is currently over open water north of Taiwan....
Texas AG Warns Against Price Gouging After Hurricane
Sep 18 2007 // Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott warned Gulf Coast residents to be wary of price gouging, charity scams and other fraudulent attempts to bilk consumers in the aftermath of Hurricane Humberto. The AG released the warning...
Climate Change Expert Predicts Hawaii Hurricanes To Get Stronger
Sep 18 2007 // Nobody can say how many hurricanes will hit Hawaii each year, according to a climate change expert, but there’s no doubt they’ll get worse. “I can’t tell you there will be more of them,”...
Federal Officials Okay Individual Aid for Tornado Victims in Northwood, N.D.
Sep 17 2007 // Federal officials have approved individual aid to residents of Northwood, N. D. to help them recover from an Aug. 26 tornado that killed one person, injured 18 and left much of the town in ruins, Gov. John Hoeven and the...
Cleanup Begins in Texas, Louisiana After Hurricane Humberto
Sep 17 2007 // Utility crews restored electricity Sept. 14 to half of the homes and businesses left without power after Hurricane Humberto, while experts estimated total damages from the storm would cost less than $500 million. Humberto,...
After Humberto, Three Texas Counties Declared Disaster Areas
Sep 14 2007 // Texas Gov. Rick Perry declared three southeast Texas counties disaster areas as a result of Hurricane Humberto, which made landfall in Southeast Texas in the early hours of Sept. 13. The storm moved ashore near the town...
Calif. Passes Bill to Fund Earthquake Authority with $1.3 Billion from Insurers
Sep 13 2007 // The California Legislature has passed SB 430, designating $1.3 billion from participating insurers to fund the California Earthquake Authority (CEA). This additional $1.3 billlion contribution is being made with no...
Powerful Quakes Hit Sumatra
Sep 13 2007 // A powerful earthquake off western Indonesia triggered warnings of a potentially destructive tsunami across much of the Indian Ocean region Wednesday, meteorological agencies said. [IJ Ed. Note: Several powerful aftershocks...
Poll Says MacGyver Character Is Disaster Preparedness Top Hero
Sep 13 2007 // In the event of disaster, Americans have chosen a 1980’s TV show character, “MacGyver” to have by their side. That was one result in a survey released this week in which participants were given a choice...
Alabama, Florida Officials Share Costs on Hurricane Evacuation Route
Sep 12 2007 // Alabama and Florida officials started a jointly funded project this week that will provide a four-lane hurricane evacuation route from the Florida Panhandle to Interstate 65 in Alabama. It’s a rare case in which a...
Insurers Call on N.C. to Strengthen Coastal Building Code Requirements
Sep 11 2007 // In testimony today before the North Carolina Building Code Council, the American Insurance Association urged that stronger hurricane resistant construction standards be required for all areas of the coast vulnerable to...
