Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Willis on Middle East Terrorism Insurance
Feb 27 2008 // Willis Group Holdings has released a summation of its presentation on terrorism insurance at the General Arab Insurance Federation (GAIF) conference in Bahrain. The global broker notes: “Despite a number of recent...
Most Utah Homeowners Don’t Buy Earthquake Coverage
Feb 26 2008 // That earthquake in eastern Nevada last week may be a bit of a wake-up call for Utah homeowners. According to the Utah Department of Insurance, most homeowners in the state don’t have coverage for earthquakes. Like...
Virginia Wildfires Drained State Funds
Feb 26 2008 // Two weeks into spring fire season, the Virginia Department of Forestry already has spent its entire 2008 funds for firefighting. Spokesman John Campbell tells the Richmond Times-Dispatch that early estimates suggest the...
Coastal Growth, Not Global Warming, Blamed for Rising Storm Losses
Feb 25 2008 // A hurricane that hit Miami in 1926 would cause up to $157 billion in damage if it were to strike today, according to a recent study. U.S. storm costs are rising because of higher populations and wealth on the coasts, not a...
Fla. Insurers See Hurricane Insurance Market on the Mend
Feb 25 2008 // The insurance market in Florida is adjusting to changing conditions – some man-made, others resulting from forces of nature – all of which make property insurance for Florida homeowners more available and more...
Tenn. Bears Brunt of February Tornadoes Across South
Feb 24 2008 // More than two dozen tornadoes tore through the mid-South late on Feb. 5, destroying homes, barns, and industrial buildings from Texas to Ohio. The severe thunderstorm outbreak, which included tornadoes, hail, heavy rain...
Catlin Seals $150 Cat Bond Purchase; Willis Advised on Deal
Feb 22 2008 // The Bermuda-based Catlin Group Limited has purchased a collateralized US$150 million annual aggregate reinsurance contract to protect the Group’s portfolio of property treaty reinsurance against accumulated losses...
Lloyd’s Analyzes Southeast Asia Terrorism Threat
Feb 22 2008 // Lloyd’s has warned that businesses operating in Southeast Asia “need to better understand that the Asian terrorism threat is unique, complex and specific to the region.” Lloyd’s and the...
Fla. Lawmakers Confront Property Insurance, again, in 2008 Session
Feb 22 2008 // Property insurance wasn’t supposed to be the big issue in the 2008 Florida Legislature. To the chagrin of many lawmakers, it just won’t go away. Legislators thought they’d largely taken care of the issue...
Magnitude 6.0 Earthquake Strikes Northeastern Nevada
Feb 22 2008 // A strong earthquake struck near the northeastern Nevada town of Wells Thursday, causing major structural damage to some older masonry buildings, igniting small fires and bursting windows in homes and businesses. According...
Munich Re Sets Up $1.5 Billion Pandemic Risk Cat Bond Facility
Feb 21 2008 // Munich Re announced the establishment of a bond program amounting to $1.5 billion for the transfer of extreme mortality risk to the capital markets. The placement marks the first time that Munich Re has set up a cat bond...
RMS and ImageCat Report on Costly 2007 Wildfire Season
Feb 21 2008 // Risk Management Solutions (RMS) and ImageCat, Inc., issued a joint research report Wednesday on the 2007 U.S. wildfire season. With a potential $2.5 billion in insured losses in California alone, last year ranks as one of...
Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Facility Receives $2.4 Million from Ireland
Feb 20 2008 // The Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF) announced that the Irish government has approved a $2.4 million contribution to the Caribbean risk pooling fund. “The contribution is the latest addition to...
Inspectors Survey Site of Tornado Damage in Fla. Panhandle
Feb 20 2008 // Inspectors were surveying damage in southern Alabama and the Florida Panhandle on Monday from a tornado that destroyed at least seven homes but didn’t cause any reported injuries. Investigators now believe that a...
Conditions Create Wildfire Threat in N.C., 14,000 Acres already Burned
Feb 20 2008 // High winds and low humidity will create critical fire conditions across parts of central and western North Carolina. The National Weather Service issued a red flag warning from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday across areas in the...
Earthquake Reported in Southern Okla.
Feb 19 2008 // A magnitude 2.4 earthquake shook southern Oklahoma at 9:41 a.m. on Feb. 15, according to the Oklahoma Geological Survey at Leonard. The OGS said the quake’s epicenter was three miles northwest of Caddo in Bryan...
Tornadoes Slam Ala., Adding to Destructive Season Across the Region
Feb 19 2008 // Another wave of tornadoes materialized in the Deep South over the weekend and this time, in Prattville, Ala., several businesses on a commercially populated boulevard were severely damaged, according to a Department of...
Farm Losses from Tennessee Tornadoes Top $29 Million
Feb 18 2008 // Agriculture officials say storm-related farm losses in Tennessee’s Macon County could surpass $29 million. The county’s livestock and tobacco industries were particularly hard-hit by the tornado that claimed at...
RMS Launches ‘Paradex’ Model for European Windstorms
Feb 15 2008 // Risk Management Solutions (RMS) announced the launch of “the first parametric index for assessing insured industry losses from windstorms in Europe.” The new model -” Paradex Europe Windstorm”...
Bush’s Budget Would Include Millions for Hurricane Research
Feb 14 2008 // President Bush’s proposed budget would include millions more in funding to improve hurricane forecasts and further research the storms, a federal official said at a recent regional discussion of the budget. The...
