Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
$25 million tornado damage in north Georgia
May 8 2006 // Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine described the tornadoes as the second largest insurance disaster in Georgia and as one of the most financially-devastating storms in Georgia’s history. More than $25 million in...
Mayfield: ‘2006 hurricane season CAN be worse than 2005’
May 8 2006 // With more than 55 million people living in coastal communities, the nation must learn its lesson from the 2004 and 2005 hurricane seasons and prepare now for what will happen after June 1, according to Max Mayfield,...
The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association: Challenges and solutions
May 8 2006 // The 2006 hurricane season is looming and the insurance industry already sees dark clouds on the horizon. The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association is considerably under-funded in the event a major hurricane makes landfall...
Hurricane winds could be felt in professional liability markets
May 8 2006 // The professional liability market may be significantly affected by the increase in frequency and severity of hurricanes, causing greater rating agency scrutiny and changes to evaluation models. “The three recent...
Lloyd’s sees 1906 San Francisco earthquake as a turning point
May 8 2006 // One of the most significant natural disasters in U.S. history, the San Francisco earthquake of 1906, rolled to its centennial anniversary April 18, 2006. One hundred years ago in San Francisco, the Earth bounced and the...
Tonga Fails to Receive Tsunami Alert from Hawaii Center
May 5 2006 // Minutes after an earthquake struck near the South Pacific nation of Tonga, tsunami warnings began to radiate to countries as far away as Fiji and New Zealand by phone, e-mail and fax. But in the island country closest to...
Hurricane Awareness Tour Successfully Concludes in Tampa, Fla.
May 5 2006 // With the official start of the Atlantic hurricane season less than one month away, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s 2006 Hurricane Awareness Tour has come to a successful conclusion in Tampa,...
Research Center to Unveil New Hurricane Loss Prediction Model
May 5 2006 // The first public model to project hurricane losses for the State of Florida has been completed by the International Hurricane Research Center in Miami, Fla. The new model already has produced excellent figures on Hurricane...
Texas Agent Group Supports Increase in Windstorm Limits
May 4 2006 // The Independent Insurance Agents of Texas announced its support of the proposal by the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) to increase commercial and government building limits to $3 million. IIAT Executive...
Businesses Call for Federal Outreach on Long-Term Terrorism Solution
May 4 2006 // The business-backed Coalition to Insure Against Terrorism (CIAT) says it welcomes the recent request by the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets (PWG) for public comments on a long-term terrorism insurance...
Fla. Calls for Federal Insurance Subsidy
May 4 2006 // The insurance crisis is not a Florida problem, it is a national problem that demands national solutions, Tom Gallagher, Florida CFO, said after applauding the Florida Legislature for calling on Congress to create a...
N.Y. Supt. Mills Urges Tax-Deferred Catastrophe Reserves for Insurers
May 4 2006 // The country may not need a natural catastrophe backup fund like it has for terrorism exposures, provided government allows insurers to create catastrophe reserves on a tax-deferred basis, according to New York’...
‘Miss Piggy,’ NOAA Aircrew, Hurricane Center Forecasters Visiting Ala., Fla.
May 3 2006 // Forecasters from the NOAA National Hurricane Center will join the air crew from the NOAA Aircraft Operations Center on hurricane hunter aircraft visits March 3, 4 and 5 to Mobile, Ala., West Palm Beach, Fla. and Tampa,...
Chesapeake Bay Warning: Storm Surges Could Top Isabel’s in 2003
May 2 2006 // New computer simulations by government scientists show that hurricane storm surges in the Chesapeake Bay could get dramatically worse than the flooding caused by Tropical Storm Isabel in 2003. Under some conditions, the...
Minn. Officials Look for Ways to Teach Immigrants What Tornado Sirens Mean
May 2 2006 // Officials in Minnesota are looking for ways to teach new immigrants what tornado sirens mean. Mao Thao had no idea what it meant the first time she heard a tornado siren go off. The recently arrived Hmong refugee spoke no...
The Harford Saw Record First Quarter Net Income; Added 250 Agents
May 1 2006 // The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc., out of Hartford, Conn., reported first quarter 2006 net income of $728 million, or $2.34 per diluted share. The Hartford’s core earnings in the first quarter of 2006 were...
NOAA Aircrew Begins Hurricane Awareness Mission in Texas
May 1 2006 // With the impact of a record-breaking 2005 Atlantic hurricane season still etched on the coastline from Texas to Florida, and recovery on the minds of its residents, forecasters from the NOAA National Hurricane Center will...
Gallagher Calls On Lawmakers to Make Insurance Reforms
May 1 2006 // As state lawmakers enter the home stretch of the 2006 legislative session, Tom Gallagher, Florida’s CFO, renewed his call for immediate rate-relief, improved access to property coverage and reforms to help strengthen...
Gov. Bush Recommends $565M Hurricane Preparedness Budget
Apr 28 2006 // A $565 million hurricane preparedness budget which includes funding for response and recovery recommendations has been recommended by Gov. Jeb Bush and Lt. Governor Toni Jennings. According to Gov. Bush, the...
Fla. Approves 12-Day Hurricane Preparedness Sales Tax Holiday
Apr 28 2006 // Governor Jeb Bush has signed legislation authorizing Florida’s second annual 12-day sales tax holiday for hurricane preparedness. The Hurricane Preparedness Sales Tax Holiday is an important component of Governor...
