Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Karen Clark & Co. Estimates $2.5B in Insured Losses from Hurricane Florence
Sep 18 2018 // Insured losses from Hurricane Florence will reach $2.5 billion, according to an estimate from Karen Clark & Co. The estimate of insured losses to residential, commercial, and industrial properties and autos comes from...
Hurricane Florence Likely to Expose Gaps in Flood Insurance
Sep 17 2018 // The number of Americans with flood insurance is on the rise, yet Hurricane Florence is likely to make it painfully clear that too many homeowners in the Carolinas and other vulnerable regions remain unprotected. . An...
Iowa Denied Federal Disaster Assistance for July Tornadoes
Sep 17 2018 // A federal agency has denied disaster assistance for residents and business owners of Marshall and Polk counties who endured tornadoes in July. Gov. Kim Reynolds’ office announced the Federal Emergency Management...
California’s Governor: Insurance Fared Better in Wildfires Bill
Sep 17 2018 // California lawmakers didn’t go as far as Governor Jerry Brown wanted to address potential liabilities for utilities from wildfires, and the governor said that “it’s hard to say” if they ever...
Virginia Museum Workers Act Fast to Protect Valuable Collection in Hurricane Florence
Sep 17 2018 // The Durand-Ruel sisters didn’t dress for hurricane season. The eldest had on a wide-brimmed hat, the kind one would take to a high-society garden party. Both wore white gowns that looked as though their sheerness...
Hong Kong, Southern China Restoring Operations After Super Typhoon
Sep 17 2018 // The financial hub of Hong Kong began clearing up on Monday after being battered by one of the strongest typhoons in recent years, with financial markets and offices operating as normal. Super typhoon Mangkhut, with...
South Carolina Issues Hurricane Florence Data Call, Emergency Order to Insurers
Sep 17 2018 // The South Carolina Department of Insurance has issued two Hurricane Florence-related notices to all property and casualty insurers doing business in the state. SCDOI Director Ray Farmer issued an emergency regulation...
ILS Market Could Bear 20% of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Marie Loss: A.M. Best
Sep 17 2018 // The insurance-linked securities (ILS) market potentially could bear up 20 percent of the insured losses generated by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Marie, according to an A.M. Best report. These three hurricanes during a...
U.S. Business Owners Find Varied Paths to Post-Disaster Recovery
Sep 17 2018 // Small business owners across the U.S. who are cleaning up from this year’s various catastrophes will find there’s no one formula for recovery. The same disaster can hurt businesses in divergent ways — a...
Report Highlights Climate Change Risks Faced by Insurance Sector
Sep 17 2018 // A report that’s being touted as the “first important review of climate risk by an international financial standard setting body” may get the attention of the insurance community. If it does, mission...
Super Typhoon Mangkhut Targets China After Killing More Than 50 in Philippines
Sep 16 2018 // A super typhoon made landfall in China’s Guangdong on Sunday, the country’s most populous province, after wreaking havoc in Hong Kong and Macau and killing potentially more than 50 people in the...
RMS Estimates Insured Losses from Typhoon Jebi Could Reach $5.5 Billion
Sep 14 2018 // The insured loss for Japan from Typhoon Jebi, which made landfall in Japan on Sept. 4, will be between USD$3 billion and $5.5billion (¥340 to ¥620billion), according to the global risk modeling firm RMS. Approximately 80...
Texas Windstorm Insurer Activates CAT Plan
Sep 14 2018 // With a tropical disturbance in the Gulf of Mexico and Tropical Depression Isaac located east of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula and heading west, the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) has activated its CAT...
Earthquake Jolts Southwestern Utah Desert
Sep 14 2018 // A small earthquake hit the southwestern Utah desert overnight. The University of Utah’s seismograph stations recorded the 3.8 magnitude earthquake just before midnight Tuesday. The epicenter was 15 miles northwest of...
How 4,000 Federal Workers Are Being Deployed for Hurricane Florence
Sep 14 2018 // As Hurricane Florence churns toward the Carolinas, bearing a potentially lethal ocean surge and winds and torrential rains, the federal government is marshaling its forces to help communities prepare and recover. President...
For First Time, 5 Named Storms Could Crowd Atlantic Ocean
Sep 14 2018 // For tropical storms, two’s company, three’s a crowd and five is, well, unprecedented. Maybe not for long. Weather forecasters are watching a disturbance in the western Gulf of Mexico that has a 50 percent...
Update: Category 1 Hurricane Florence Lands in Carolinas, Threatening Floods, Tornadoes, Power Outages
Sep 14 2018 // Hurricane Florence hit North Carolina, leaving more than half a million people without power and facing at least another day of heavy rain and wind. Florence made landfall near Wrightsville Beach Friday as a Category 1...
Hurricane Florence Hits Close to Home for North Carolina-Based Broker AmWINS
Sep 14 2018 // For North Carolina-headquartered global insurance broker AmWINS Group Inc., Hurricane Florence isn’t just a storm that will affect insureds – many of its own employees and agents are also directly in the...
Wind, Storm Surge Losses from Florence Could Reach $5B; Top 10 Insurers Affected in Carolinas
Sep 14 2018 // This enhanced satellite image made available by NOAA shows Hurricane Florence off the eastern coast of the United States on Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018 at 5:52 p.m. EDT. (NOAA via AP) Hurricane Florence was downgraded to a...
Hurricane Florence Could Pressure Congress to Extend NFIP, IIAV’s Bradshaw Says
Sep 13 2018 // Hurricane Florence could put pressure on U.S. Congress to extend the National Flood Insurance Program, but “it is still an open question as to whether it will lead to a comprehensive reform bill passing,”...


