Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Montana Town Threatened by Wildfire; Hundreds Evacuate
Aug 31 2017 // Authorities in Montana ordered the evacuation of nearly 600 homes after a fire burning on a mountain ridge suddenly changed direction and threatened a popular destination for boaters, anglers and hikers. The fire near...
India’s Financial Hub Paralyzed by Torrential Monsoon Rains; Death Toll Rises
Aug 31 2017 // Two toddlers were among 14 people killed in Mumbai after floods caused by heavy monsoon rains destroyed homes and disrupted traffic in India’s financial capital, police said, but lighter-than-feared rain on Wednesday...
Climate Change and Hurricanes – The Worst Is Yet to Come
Aug 31 2017 // How powerful would Hurricane Harvey have been in 1880? How much stronger might it be in 2100? A single Hurricane Harvey has been more than anyone can bear. But to better prepare cities for future storms, researchers are...
Update: Claims Teams Begin Handling Onslaught of Harvey Claims
Aug 31 2017 // Hurricane Harvey has set a U.S record, according to the National Weather Service, dumping 51.88 inches of rain in parts of Texas. As the tropical storm moves over southern Louisiana, claims catastrophe teams are moving in...
Tallying Massive Costs of Harvey to Victims, Insurers, Taxpayers and Economy
Aug 31 2017 // Hurricane Harvey’s costs to the victims in its path, to U.S. taxpayers, to insurers and to the economy were still being calculated on Wednesday, with few firm estimates available yet. Texas could need more than $125...
Law’s Ambiguity a Source of Mixed Messages Over Texas Cat Claims Statute
Aug 30 2017 // Ambiguity surrounding a Texas law that goes into effect on Sept. 1 has insurance industry representatives and attorneys who represent insurance policyholders sending conflicting messages to insureds who may have suffered...
Harvey Bears Down on Louisiana as Flooding Paralyzes Houston
Aug 30 2017 // Tropical Storm Harvey bore down on Louisiana on Wednesday, pouring down more water after setting rainfall records in Texas that caused catastrophic flooding and paralyzed the U.S. energy hub of Houston. The storm that...
Oregon Wildfires Have Cost Taxpayers More Than $100M in 2017
Aug 30 2017 // Oregon wildfires already have burned nearly 500 square miles this year, as one of the state’s many multimillion-dollar forest fires this season smolders and flares away. The Register-Guard reported the blaze, started...
Insurance Industry Opens Hurricane Harvey Disaster Relief Fund
Aug 30 2017 // The nonprofit Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF) has established the IICF Hurricane Harvey Disaster Relief Fund to assist victims affected by Hurricane Harvey. IICF said it will collect and report on the total...
Texas Regulators Offer Guidance to Insurers on Harvey Response
Aug 29 2017 // The Texas Department of Insurance has issued several bulletins offering guidance to insurers related to Hurricane Harvey, which made landfall near Rockport, Texas, late on Aug. 25. The bulletins are in response to the...
Lloyd’s Insurers’ Stocks Fall on Possible Claims from Hurricane Harvey
Aug 29 2017 // Lloyd’s of London insurers dropped amid speculation that they will suffer losses from Tropical Storm Harvey that’s battering Houston, the epicenter of the U.S. oil industry. The storm, which which made landfall...
Tornado in Florida Causes Damage to Several Buildings
Aug 29 2017 // A tornado damaged buildings and cars and toppled trees in Florida but no one was hurt. The Bradenton Herald reports that the tornado struck Saturday night in Manatee County with winds of 70 mph (112 kph). The newspaper...
IIAV ‘Redoubling’ Hurricane Preparedness Efforts Since Following Harvey’s Texas Impact
Aug 28 2017 // The Independent Insurance Agents of Virginia (IIAV) is motivated to “redouble its efforts” around hurricane preparedness, particularly as it relates to flood damage, since following Hurricane Harvey’s...
Harvey’s Catastrophic Costs Mount; Many Lack Adequate Insurance
Aug 28 2017 // Hurricane Harvey’s second act across southern Texas is turning into an economic catastrophe — with damages likely to stretch into tens of billions of dollars and an unusually large share of victims lacking...
Typhoon Hato Will Have Limited Financial Impact on Macau Insurers: A.M. Best
Aug 28 2017 // Typhoon Hato will have only a moderate impact on the earnings of rated non-life insurers in Macau, and a limited effect on their financial strength, according to A.M. Best. On Aug. 23, 2017, Typhoon Hato (Category 2 on the...
25 Years Later…What If an Andrew-Type Storm Hit Florida Today?
Aug 28 2017 // Though Florida hasn’t suffered a category 5 storm since Hurricane Andrew hit the north Miami area on Aug. 24 1992, the risk of such a storm has not gone away or even declined. In fact, the state’s risk of...
Harvey’s Flooding of Houston ‘Beyond Anything Experienced Before’
Aug 28 2017 // Catastrophic flooding triggered by Tropical Storm Harvey inundated Houston on Sunday, forcing residents of the fourth most populous U.S. city to flee their homes in boats or hunker down in anticipation of several more days...
Hurricane Harvey Could Spur Congress to Act on Flood Insurance
Aug 28 2017 // The destruction that heavy rain and floods from Hurricane Harvey could inflict on Texas would add to the pile of debt owed by a federal flood insurance program that is due to expire in September, advocacy groups said. The...
Hurricane Harvey’s Flood Insurance Losses Could Match Katrina’s
Aug 28 2017 // Flood damage in Texas from Hurricane Harvey may equal that from 2005’s Hurricane Katrina, the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history, said an insurance research group on Sunday. As heavy rain pounded Houston and...
Hurricane Harvey Shutters Key Oil, Gas Operations in Texas
Aug 27 2017 // Key oil and gas facilities along the Texas Gulf Coast have temporarily shut down as Hurricane Harvey pounds the region with torrential rain and high winds, virtually assuring gasoline prices will rise in the storm’s...
