Latest Flood Headlines
All the headlines from our Flood Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Flood Emergency Declared at Utah Dam During Heavy Snowmelt
Feb 13 2017 // Federal water managers declared a first-stage flood emergency for the first time at a popular state park and released water from a dam as warming temperatures sent water from rapid snowmelt into homes and onto roads in...
In Washington, Louisiana Governor Seeks More Flood Assistance
Feb 9 2017 // Gov. John Bel Edwards is making his sixth trip to Washington to lobby for $2 billion more federal flood aid for Louisiana. The state has received $1.6 billion from Congress so far to respond to the March and August...
Louisiana Commissioner Extends Flooding Emergency Rule after Tornadoes
Feb 9 2017 // Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon has issued Emergency Rule 32, which extends previous emergency rules issued after the historic flooding in the state in August 2016. The Louisiana Department of Insurance said...
Severe U.S. Weather During January Cost Insurers More Than $1B: Aon
Feb 9 2017 // Major weather and flood events in the U.S. during January will cost the insurance industry more than $1 billion as tornadoes hit a 17-year high, according a report published by Impact Forecasting, Aon Benfield’s...
Demolishing of Baton Rouge Flood-Damaged Homes Set to Begin
Feb 8 2017 // Baton Rouge, La., officials are preparing to tear down abandoned homes that were damaged from flooding in August. The city-parish said in a Feb. 6 news release that officials will start to condemn the abandoned units, with...
Proof of Loss Deadline Extended for Florida Hurricane Matthew Claims
Feb 8 2017 // The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation announced that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has granted another extension giving National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) policyholders in Florida an additional...
School Flood Damage in Baton Rouge Tops $60M
Feb 7 2017 // Officials estimate that it will cost more than $62 million and years of work to repair flooded schools in Baton Rouge. The Advocate reports that of the 10 schools that were forced to temporarily relocate because of the...
Red River Flooding Concerns on the Rise in Midwest
Feb 7 2017 // After several dry springs, communities are keeping a wary eye on the Red River in case it’s due for another flood. The region has been soaked with double the usual amount of winter rain, sleet and snow this winter,...
Deadline Extended for Louisiana NFIP Policyholders Affected by August Flood
Feb 6 2017 // Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon says the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has granted an additional 90-day extension of an important deadline for National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) policyholders affected...
Flooding and Damaging Wind Were Most Destructive Natural Hazards in 2016
Feb 2 2017 // This post is part of a series sponsored by CoreLogic. Annual Summary from CoreLogic Details 2016 Natural Hazard Events CoreLogic® analyzes and evaluates the number and severity of natural hazard events that occurred...
Coalition Urges Modernization of National Flood Insurance Program
Feb 1 2017 // A U.S. flood insurance program that is drowning in billions of dollars in debt can be modernized to bolster its finances while curbing the public’s exposure to flood risks, a national coalition said in a reform...
Late Planting, August Floods Hurt Louisiana Sweet Potato Crop
Jan 31 2017 // The LSU AgCenter says late planting and August floods hurt Louisiana’s sweet potato harvest, cutting the yield from 450 bushels an acre in 2015 to 290 bushels per acre last year. Extension Associate Myrl Systrunk...
California Surplus Lines Are Now A Bigger Chunk of the Commercial Market
Jan 27 2017 // The phrase “new normal” might be a cliché, but it was too hard for Ben McKay, executive director of the Surplus Lines Association of California, to avoid using when describing the state’s excess and...
Houston Seeks to Expedite Funding for Flood-Control Measures
Jan 26 2017 // Officials intend to introduce an innovative plan to speed up funding for flood-control measures along Houston bayous. The Houston Chronicle reports the city council is considering a payment plan that would have the state...
Intense Storms, Flooding Wallop California
Jan 24 2017 // The tail end of a punishing winter storm system lashed California with thunderstorms and severe winds Monday after breaking rainfall records, washing out roads and whipping up enormous waves. At least four people died and...
Recovery Task Force Backs $1.2B Louisiana Flood Aid Plan
Jan 23 2017 // Louisiana’s flood recovery task force has agreed to Gov. John Bel Edwards’ proposal to spend $1.2 billion in federal aid allocated by Congress, with most of the money targeted for homeowners. Under the plan...
U.S. Floods, Other Major Climate Events Rack Up $46 Billion in Cost, 138 Lives in 2016
Jan 23 2017 // During 2016, the United States experienced 15 weather and climate disasters with insured and uninsured losses exceeding $1 billion each across the United States. Overall, these events resulted in the deaths of 138 people...
Tornadoes, Hurricanes and Fires… Oh My! Southeast Weathers Tough 2016
Jan 23 2017 // It is fair to say 2016 was the year of the catastrophe in the Southeast. Tornadoes, drought, floods, hurricanes and wildfires impacted virtually every state in the region. For the insurance industry, these events made for...
Surplus Lines Specialty Coverages on the Upswing in Texas
Jan 23 2017 // The Surplus Lines Stamping Office of Texas, which recently changed its acronym from SLSOT to SLTX, reported at the end of 2016 that the number of surplus lines policy filings had surpassed the numbers recorded in 2014 or...
NFIP: Number of Flood Policies in Louisiana Now at More than 480K
Jan 23 2017 // The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) says there are now more than 480,000 active NFIP flood policies in Louisiana following the March and August floods, representing an increase of more than 35,000 policies. NFIP...
