Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Bankruptcy Court Approves PG&E’s Chapter 11 Reorganization Plan
Jun 22 2020 // PG&E Corp. said its Chapter 11 reorganization plan has been confirmed by the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California, bringing the power provider one step closer to emerging from...
Allstate: May 2020 Catastrophe Losses Mostly in Midwest, Texas
Jun 22 2020 // Allstate says severe weather events in Texas and the Midwest account for the majority of its $350 million in catastrophe losses in May 2020. Northbrook, Illinois-based Allstate Corp. has estimated catastrophe losses for...
Florida Congresswoman Requests Longer Hurricane Season
Jun 22 2020 // Even though the six-month Atlantic hurricane season lasts as long as a typical Major League Baseball season, a Florida congresswoman thinks it needs to be longer. Democratic U.S. Rep. Stephanie Murphy sent a letter to the...
Backers of Controversial California Homeowners Insurance Bill Like Its Momentum, Timing
Jun 17 2020 // Backers of a controversial bill in California, which they say is designed to increase insurance coverage in high-risk wildfire areas by amending Proposition 103, believe it has the right timing and plenty of momentum to go...
Colorado Wildfire Grows to 4.2 Square Miles
Jun 17 2020 // A lightning-caused wildfire in southwestern Colorado that has led to the evacuation of more than two dozen homes has grown to about 4.2 square miles. The fire started Saturday and was burning on private and U.S. Bureau of...
PG&E Will Plead Guilty to Deaths From California Wildfire
Jun 17 2020 // Pacific Gas & Electric is expected to plead guilty to 84 felony counts of involuntary manslaughter during a court hearing in which the nation’s largest utility will be confronted with its history of neglect and...
Lexington Insurance Wins Texas Battle of Hurricane Harvey Deductibles
Jun 15 2020 // In a case of competing deductibles, a federal appeals court has sided with an insurer and against the owner of two Houston office buildings, holding that a larger windstorm deductible applied to flood damage caused by...
Survey: Florida Residents More Concerned for Hurricane Season Amid Pandemic
Jun 15 2020 // Florida has officially started hurricane season and a new survey shows a majority of residents are more concerned for this year’s potential storms than in previous years, given the simultaneous continuing issues...
Florida Cat Fund Foregoes Private Reinsurance for 2020 Hurricane Season
Jun 15 2020 // Reinsurance coverage for the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund was not purchased for this year’s hurricane season after overseers of the fund evaluated the market and found a lack of private capital availability. In...
Correction: 127 Oklahoma Tornadoes in First 5 Months of 2019, Not 186
Jun 12 2020 // Note: In a previous story about there being fewer tornadoes in Oklahoma thus far in 2020, The Associated Press erroneously reported the number of tornadoes through the first five months of 2019. There were 127, not 186...
Tornado Numbers Down in Oklahoma in 2020, So Far
Jun 11 2020 // Following a record-setting year for the number of tornadoes in Oklahoma, the state has seen fewer thus far in 2020, according to state climatologist Gary McManus. There were 33 twisters during the first five months of this...
Updated Residential Earthquake Damage Guidelines for California Released
Jun 9 2020 // The California Earthquake Authority today released updated guidelines for identifying, evaluating and repairing residential earthquake damage were The guidelines were updated at CEA’s annual claim manager...
Tornado in Orlando Topples Trees, Damages Buildings
Jun 9 2020 // A tornado that struck the Orlando area toppled trees and damaged buildings but did not cause any deaths or injuries, authorities say. The National Weather Service said the twister had winds of at least 100 mph (160 kmh)....
Tropical Storm Cristobal Brings Rain, Flooding to South
Jun 8 2020 // Rain pounded the U.S. Gulf Coast on Sunday ahead of the arrival of Tropical Storm Cristobal, which had already spawned a tornado in Florida. Roads flooded in coastal Louisiana and Mississippi, and thousands were without...
As Texas Grapples with Pandemic, Officials Prepare for Hurricane Season
Jun 8 2020 // More hurricanes and tropical storms than usual could make landfall in the United States this summer, forecasters predict. That is sending Texans and officials who are increasingly facing severe weather events scrambling to...
Alabama Alters Hurricane Shelter Plans Due to Coronavirus Concerns
Jun 8 2020 // Shelters that open during dangerous hurricanes may look and operate differently this storm season, state emergency officials said, as the new coronavirus complicate response plans. Across the coastal United States,...
West-Central, Southern Minnesota Hit with Tornado, Large Hail
Jun 5 2020 // At least one tornado moved through west-central and southern Minnesota, but there are no reports of injuries or widespread damage, according to the National Weather Service. The tornado was reported near Garden City about...
Magnitude 5.5 Earthquake Confirmed in California Desert Region
Jun 5 2020 // A magnitude 5.5 earthquake has jolted the region of California desert where a powerful quake last summer was followed by thousands of aftershocks, the U.S. Geological Survey confirmed. The USGS says Wednesday’s quake...
Homes Burned, Evacuations Ordered in California Wildfire
Jun 5 2020 // A grass fire burning northeast of San Francisco destroyed or damaged about a dozen homes Wednesday and prompted evacuations of several streets, fire officials said. The fire erupted at around 3:30 p.m. near a wildlife...
Diverging Views: Is COVID a One-Off Catastrophe or Not?
Jun 5 2020 // While reinsurers are “open for business” and insurers and reinsurers are reporting the impacts of COVID-19 as a one-off catastrophe impacting earnings rather than capital, equity markets are viewing the...
