Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
California Wildfire Insurance Policy Notification Bill Signed
Jul 16 2018 // California Gov. Jerry Brown has signed legislation to require insurance companies to let homeowners know whether their policies are sufficient to rebuild or replace their homes after a disaster. Assembly Bill 1799, by...
Wet Monsoon Season on Tap for Southern Nevada
Jul 16 2018 // Forecasters with the National Weather Service are warning residents in southern Nevada about the potential for flash flooding this summer since the monsoon season is expected to be wetter than normal. A new forecast shows...
OSHA Warns Pennsylvania About Safety Hazards During Tornado Recovery
Jul 16 2018 // Following a tornado that caused millions of dollars of property damage in the Wilkes-Barre, Penn., area, the U.S. Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is urging all involved in...
Will California Wildfires Be Worse This Year?
Jul 13 2018 // As blame for California’s wildfires rises over Sacramento like smoke from last year’s blazes, the state is being forced to confront the possibility that it’ll happen again in 2018. California’s...
Oklahoma Sees Fewer but More Severe Earthquakes This Year
Jul 10 2018 // Oklahoma’s 4.0 earthquakes are up significantly this year, but the overall rate of earthquakes is declining. Oklahoma has had six quakes of at least magnitude 4.0 halfway through this year, which is one more than all...
California Wildfire Insurance Policy Notification Bill Signed
Jul 10 2018 // California Gov. Jerry Brown has signed legislation to requires insurance companies to let homeowners know whether their policies are sufficient to rebuild or replace their homes after a disaster. Assembly Bill 1799, by...
Taiwan Prepares for Typhoon Maria, Forcing Cancellation of 250 Flights
Jul 10 2018 // Taiwan warned businesses and schools to prepare for extreme conditions as Severe Typhoon Maria closes in on the island, disrupting flights and curtailing futures trading. The typhoon could bring strong winds and heavy...
Florida Wildfire Victims Still Awaiting Housing Aid 2 Weeks Later
Jul 10 2018 // More than 100 people have been waiting for temporary housing for almost two weeks since being displaced by a wildfire that burned through their tiny community in the Florida Panhandle. In a Panama City News Herald report ,...
Washington’s Skagit County Gets New Tsunami Planning Maps
Jul 9 2018 // Skagit County officials in northwestern Washington have a new resource to help plan for potential big waves caused by large earthquakes along the West Coast. Skagit County Department of Emergency Management Director Doug...
New, Old Wildfires Rage Amid California Heat Wave
Jul 9 2018 // Firefighters toiled in stifling heat Saturday on the lines of destructive wildfires across the U.S. West, making progress against some blazes while struggling to tame others that have forced evacuations of hundreds of...
Super Typhoon Maria Heads Toward Taiwan, Spurring Extreme Weather Warnings
Jul 9 2018 // A fierce typhoon is headed in the direction of Taiwan, spurring warnings over extreme weather that risks shuttering schools, businesses and the stock exchange. Super Typhoon Maria could bring strong winds and heavy rains...
Beryl, Season’s First Hurricane, Weakens; Caribbean Islands, Puerto Rico Face Uncertainty
Jul 8 2018 // Tropical Storm Beryl moved rapidly westward early Sunday, heading for the Lesser Antilles at the eastern entrance of the Caribbean Sea. Although what had been the Atlantic season’s first hurricane was losing power,...
California Legislative Special Committee to Consider Wildfire Liability
Jul 6 2018 // California lawmakers may change the standard for determining whether utilities are liable for wildfire damage following the worst wildfire season in state history. Gov. Jerry Brown and legislative leaders said on July 2...
Intensifying Western Wildfires Kept Thousands Away from Home on July 4
Jul 5 2018 // Large wildfires grew across the American West on July 4, keeping thousands of people out of their homes for the July 4 holiday and forcing some strict bans on fireworks to prevent new fires from igniting in the hot, dry...
Forecasters Now See Below-Average Activity for Rest of Hurricane Season
Jul 5 2018 // Scientists at Colorado State University’s Tropical Meteorology Project have decreased their forecast and now believe that 2018 hurricane season will have below-average activity. According to the forecasters, the...
Wildfire Destroys 100-Plus Colorado Homes, Other Blazes Burning in West
Jul 3 2018 // More than 100 homes in the Colorado mountains were destroyed by a growing wildfire, while hundreds of others across the parched U.S. West remained under evacuations Tuesday. A fire near Fort Garland, roughly 200 miles...
Tornadoes Cause Damage in Southeastern Montana
Jul 3 2018 // A storm that produced as many as five tornadoes destroyed a home and caused other damage in Montana and South Dakota, the National Weather Service confirmed. The NWS estimates one tornado Thursday night had winds over 130...
Winds Fan Fast-Moving Northern California Wildfire
Jul 3 2018 // A massive wildfire in rural Northern California has grown in size and has forced evacuations. The fast-moving fire that started over the weekend northwest of Sacramento grew dramatically to about 150 square miles by Monday...
Fear of Wildfires Leads to July Fourth Fireworks Cancellations
Jul 3 2018 // Fire danger across much of the country has prompted cancellation of July 4 fireworks displays. In northern Arizona, Prescott’s fire chief says he’s canceling the town’s Fourth of July fireworks show as...
Wet Monsoon Season on Tap for Southern Nevada
Jul 2 2018 // Forecasters with the National Weather Service are warning residents in southern Nevada about the potential for flash flooding this summer since the monsoon season is expected to be wetter than normal. Meteorologist John...
