Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Hurricane Forecasters Issue April Update for 2008 Season
Apr 10 2008 // A “well above-average” Atlantic hurricane season with eight hurricanes and 15 named storms entering the basin is predicted for 2008, according to forecasters at Colorado State University’s Department of...
North Little Rock Twister Claims Tornado Siren; Damages in Millions
Apr 8 2008 // The National Weather Service released a survey of a recent tornado that went from North Little Rock, Ark., into Sherwood and damaged numerous structures at a cost of millions of dollars. Among the casualties was a tornado...
Climate Change Heats Up Insurance Industry
Apr 7 2008 // Greenhouse gases (GHGs) have gotten a bad rap, according to Mark C. Bove, senior research meteorologist, catastrophic risk management for Munich Reinsurance America. Speaking on a panel about climate change at the...
Willis Re Hosts Bulgarian Risk Management Seminar
Apr 3 2008 // Willis Re, the reinsurance division of global insurance broker Willis Group Holdings, recently hosted a risk management seminar in Sofia, Bulgaria “to highlight the growing challenges facing Bulgarian insurance...
Recent Nevada Quakes May or May Not Mean Big One Coming
Apr 3 2008 // There’s no way to know whether recent swarms of earthquakes in northeast Nevada and near Reno are an indicator that a bigger quake is coming, experts say. “We can say with 100 percent certainty that large...
Hurricane Law Group Alleges Florida Withheld Consumers’ Mediation Options
Apr 3 2008 // The Florida-based Hurricane Law Group announced today that it has filed a lawsuit in the Circuit Court of the Second Judicial Circuit in Leon County against CFO Alex Sink, Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty, the...
Small Earthquake Causes Tremors in Southeast Missouri
Apr 2 2008 // A small earthquake near the southeast Missouri town of Poplar Bluff Monday morning wasn’t strong enough to cause any damage. National Weather Service meteorologist Alex Dodd says the 2.8 magnitude quake at 5:45 a.m....
Mobile Homes – Not Trailers – Arrive for Tennessee Tornado Victims
Apr 2 2008 // Tennessee is taking delivery of mobile homes from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to temporarily house Macon County tornado victims. While FEMA trailers have been scrutinized recently over reports of exposing...
Actuaries Identify Hurricanes as Top Insurance Risk for 2008
Apr 2 2008 // Hurricanes pose the greatest act of nature risk to the U.S. insurance industry for 2008, according to EMB, an actuarial consulting firm. With the hurricane season on the horizon, insurers must prepare for this heightened...
Georgia Hospital Destroyed by Tornado Opens Full Service Facility
Apr 1 2008 // A small town Georgia hospital destroyed by a tornado a little more than a year ago is ready to open its doors again. Sumter Regional Hospital in Americus, Ga., will offer the full gamut of hospital services – from...
Texas Orders Bogus Windstorm Inspector to Cease and Desist
Apr 1 2008 // The Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) issued an emergency cease and desist order against Gary Garza of Corpus Christi, Texas, to prevent him from submitting windstorm inspection reports under false pretenses. Garza, who...
Disaster Derivatives Set to Grow in 2008
Apr 1 2008 // With the United States bracing for big hurricanes this year, new derivatives to trade catastrophe risks offer insurers the extra protection they crave against multi-billion-dollar storms. Trading of “catastrophe...
North Carolina Wildfire Burns for 2 Days, Causes Evacuations
Mar 31 2008 // Smoke from a wildfire burning for two days in North Carolina’s Sauratown Mountain has clouded the skies over Stokes County, and the fire marshal said the blaze led to several evacuations. Fire Marshal Brad Cheek said...
Scientists Work to Keep Public Safe From Hawaii Volcano Fumes
Mar 27 2008 // Explosive eruptions and noxious gas emissions at Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii this week have prompted scientists to work around the clock to understand what will happen next and how to keep the public out of harm’s...
Florida Senate Passes Bill to Reduce Insurers’ Catastrophe Coverage Limits
Mar 27 2008 // Legislation passed by the Florida Senate this week would reduce the amount of state-funded reinsurance that insurers can purchase under the temporary increase in coverage limit (TICL) program. The Senate bill would reduce...
Ohio Tornado Drill Marks Beginning of Severe Weather Season
Mar 27 2008 // Remember, this is only a test. Tornado sirens blared at 9:50 a.m. in a statewide drill on Wednesday ordered by Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland as part of Severe Weather Awareness Week. In his proclamation, the governor says...
Anchorage in Tsunami-Free Zone
Mar 26 2008 // Alaska is testing its tsunami warning system this week, and officials say they’re using the event to remind Anchorage residents they don’t have to worry. Kattaryna Stiles is acting director of the Anchorage...
Marsh Warns London Firms ‘Under-prepared’ for Terrorist Attack
Mar 24 2008 // Despite the past deadly attacks and the continuing threat of renewed violence, “London firms appear under-prepared for a terrorist attack,” concludes Marsh from the results of an ad hoc poll. Marsh conducted a...
Head-in-the-Sand Response Won’t Work for Florida Property Insurance
Mar 24 2008 // As the 2008 legislative session begins and hurricane season approaches, Florida’s businesses and homeowners continue to struggle with the increasing cost of property insurance. The quest for answers to the...
