Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
RMS Forecasts Increased Growth for Insurance Linked Securities in 2010
Jan 7 2010 // A bulletin from Risk Management Solutions notes that the fourth quarter of 2009 was the “most active… ever for catastrophe bond issuance, reaching almost $1.1 billion in total volume, eclipsing the previous...
Hurricane Forecasters Promise Earlier Warnings
Jan 7 2010 // The National Hurricane Center said this week it will begin issuing storm watches and warnings about half a day sooner in the biggest change to its warning system in decades. When a storm is approaching land, forecasters...
UPDATE: 1,000 People Left Homeless on Solomons after Tsunami
Jan 6 2010 // A disaster management official says an earthquake and a tsunami have destroyed 200 homes on one island in the Solomons leaving about one-third of the population homeless. Disaster management office director Loti Yates says...
Swiss Re Obtains $150 Million Cat Bond Cover for Calif. Quakes
Jan 5 2010 // Swiss Re has entered into a transaction with Redwood Capital XI Ltd., a Cayman Islands exempted company financed through the offering of insurance-linked securities, to receive up to $150 million in the event of a...
Quakes Shake Solomon Islands; No injuries or Damage Reported
Jan 5 2010 // The Solomon Islands were shaken by a string of earthquakes Monday – including one registering a powerful 7.2 magnitude – but officials in the South Pacific country said there were no immediate reports of...
Most Property Reinsurance Rates Down at January Renewal As Capital Rebounds
Jan 5 2010 // Reinsurance rates across most lines of property catastrophe business declined at the Jan. 1, 2010 renewal, according to a briefing by Guy Carpenter & Co., LLC. Guy Carpenter’s World Catastrophe Rate on Line...
Wet, Cool Year in Arkansas; Fewer Tornadoes Than ’08
Jan 5 2010 // First there was the ice that blanketed the northern third of Arkansas. Then the tornado that ripped through Mena. Next came rain – record-breaking amounts of it in 15 Arkansas cities and areas. Long, soaking rains...
Wildfires Destroy Homes in Western Australia
Dec 31 2009 // Wildfires roared across a swath of Western Australia on Wednesday, razing almost 40 homes and sending hundreds of people fleeing for their lives, officials and witnesses said. At least three people were injured. Two major...
Munich Re Analyzes 2009 Nat Cats; A Lot, But Few Big Ones
Dec 30 2009 // A report from Munich Re confirms that losses from natural catastrophes “were far lower in 2009 than in 2008 due to the absence on the whole of major catastrophes and a very benign North Atlantic hurricane...
Swiss Re Forecasts Increasing Demand for Natural Catastrophe Coverage
Dec 29 2009 // Swiss Re has concluded that, despite the unusually quiet 2009 hurricane season, “overall natural catastrophe losses have increased significantly over time and are expected to grow further. “The premium for our...
5 Years After Deadly Indonesia Tsunami, Communities Better Prepared
Dec 23 2009 // Five years after a Sumatra Indonesia tsunami killed 230,000 people, officials say that more communities are taking the threat seriously, implementing warning systems and understanding that swift action is needed if a...
P/C Industry’s Net Income Up; Combined Ratio at 100.7 for Q3
Dec 22 2009 // Private U.S. property/casualty insurers’ net income after taxes rose to $16.2 billion through nine-months 2009, partially recovering from the 91.2 percent decline to $4.4 billion through nine-months 2008 from $49.6...
Indonesia’s Next Big Quake Due under Mentawais Islands
Dec 22 2009 // A massive undersea earthquake is long overdue beneath the Mentawai islands in Indonesia and could trigger another deadly tsunami, say scientists mapping one of the world’s most quake-prone zones. Unlike the 2004...
Scientists Update California Tsunami Maps
Dec 21 2009 // Scientists have released updated tsunami maps pinpointing California coasts vulnerable to giant waves generated by an undersea earthquake. Previous hazard maps only covered select coastal communities and focused on...
AAIS Offers New Homeowners Rating Plan for Earthquake Coverage
Dec 21 2009 // The American Association of Insurance Services (AAIS) has initiated a countrywide filing of a new earthquake rating plan under its Homeowners Program. The earthquake plan, which consists of self-contained manual...
Equipment Could Help Determine Cause of Oklahoma Quakes
Dec 21 2009 // During a typical year, Jones residents will feel one or two earthquakes. This year there have been 25 since March, and all of them have been felt, according to the Oklahoma Geological Survey. “I can tell you...
Truth or Lore? Insurance ‘Factorama’ Explores the Known and Little-Known
Dec 20 2009 // It’s the end of the decade that apparently has no name as yet, but that doesn’t stop those of us at Insurance Journal from looking back at the past 10 years and beyond for known and little-known insurance...
Forecasters Expect More Active Atlantic Hurricane Season Next Year
Dec 20 2009 // Colorado State University researchers are predicting a more active Atlantic hurricane season next year, with six to eight hurricanes, at least three of them major. Philip Klotzbach and William Gray predict 11 to 16 named...
NOAA: United States Better Prepared for Tsunamis
Dec 18 2009 // Five years since the December 2004 Sumatra Indonesia Tsunami k illed 230,000, the United States has acclerated preparation for a potential tsunami along the U.S. coastline and built partnerships for an international...
AIR Analyzes Impact of Tropical Storm Laurence on Western Australia
Dec 17 2009 // According to a report from catastrophe risk modeling firm AIR Worldwide, “severe Tropical Cyclone Laurence made a second landfall this evening [Dec. 16] along the Kimberley coast of north Western Australia State....
