Latest Natural Disasters Headlines
All the headlines from our Natural Disasters Topic Page, ordered by recency.
KCC Completes Review of California Wildfire Model
Aug 1 2025 // The California Department of Insurance completed a review of the KCC US Wildfire Reference Model Version 3.0, making it the state’s second wildfire catastrophe model. The new model for use by insurers in assessing...
Newsom Seeks $18B for Utilities’ Wildfire Fund as California Faces Future Blazes
Jul 31 2025 // California Gov. Gavin Newsom is circulating a legislative proposal to shore up a state fund for utilities that’s at risk of being depleted following the deadly wildfires that struck Los Angeles County in January. The...
Suspect in Michigan Walmart Stabbings Charged With Rarely Used Terrorism Count
Jul 31 2025 // A Michigan prosecutor filed a terrorism charge this wek against a man accused of stabbing 11 people at a Walmart store. The charge has been rarely used in the state’s courts since it was adopted more than 20 years...
Huge Quake Rocks Russia’s Far East, Triggering Tsunami Warnings Around Pacific
Jul 30 2025 // A very powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia’s Far Eastern Kamchatka coast on Wednesday triggered tsunami warnings as far away as French Polynesia and Chile, and was followed by an eruption of the most active...
Update: Shanghai Evacuates 280,000 Residents as Tropical Storm Arrives
Jul 30 2025 // Shanghai has evacuated around 280,000 people and canceled flights as a tropical storm crossed China’s financial hub, bringing strong winds and heavy rainfall that threatens flash flooding. Storm Co-may — known...
H1 Natural Disasters Had Insured Price Tag of $80B – Driven by US Claims: Munich Re
Jul 29 2025 // Natural disasters across the globe cost insurers US$80 billion during the first half of 2025, up from $64 billion in H1 2024, according to Munich Re’s mid-year natural disaster report. On the other hand, overall...
Volunteers Repair Appalachian Trail Damage Almost a Year After Hurricane Helene
Jul 29 2025 // UNICOI COUNTY, Tenn. (AP) — In a rugged patch of the Appalachian Trail in eastern Tennessee, volunteers size up a massive, gnarled tree lying on its side. Its tangled web of roots and dark brown soil, known as a root...
Panel Passes Bill to Curb Vacation Rentals, Boost Housing Supply After Lahaina Wildfire
Jul 29 2025 // Lawmakers on Maui passed legislation aimed at eliminating a large percentage of the Hawaiian island’s vacation rentals to address a housing shortage exacerbated by the wildfire that destroyed most of Lahaina two...
Europe Inc Swerves Trump Trade War ‘Hurricane’ but Laments Higher Tariffs
Jul 28 2025 // European companies were left wondering on Monday whether to cheer a hard-won U.S. trade deal or lament a still sharp jump in tariffs versus those in place before President Donald Trump’s second term. A day earlier,...
California Department of Insurance Completes Final Review of Wildfire Model
Jul 24 2025 // The California Department of Insurance completed a review of the state’s first wildfire catastrophe model, marking a dramatic change in the state’s property/casualty insurance ratemaking process. The new model...
Wildfires in Mediterranean Leave a Dozen Dead as Heat Soars
Jul 24 2025 // Wildfires fueled by soaring temperatures and strong winds across the eastern Mediterranean left a dozen people dead in Turkey and Cyprus. Ten forest workers and search and rescue volunteers were killed in Turkey’s...
Arizona Governor Tours Wildfire Destruction Along Grand Canyon’s North Rim
Jul 22 2025 // Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs toured the destruction left by a wildfire along the Grand Canyon’s North Rim, on Saturday, surveying what she described as devastating damage. The governor, who has called for an...
How Crockett, Texas Turned a Devastating Tornado Into Funding for Sirens
Jul 21 2025 // A small East Texas community is in the final stages of installing a state-of-the-art disaster warning system officials have been working toward for years. Six new sirens will be placed strategically throughout the city of...
The New Approach to Hurricane-Strong Homes? Concrete Walls But Affordable
Jul 21 2025 // If wind mitigation and stronger homes are the paths to reducing insurance claims and bringing down insurance premiums in hurricane-prone areas, as a growing number of industry experts believe, then homeowners, builders and...
Los Angeles Sues Airbnb for Alleged Price Gouging Following Wildfires
Jul 18 2025 // Los Angeles sued Airbnb, accusing the home rental company of allowing price gouging affecting at least 2,000 properties during January’s wildfires in Southern California, City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto said on...
Alaska Tsunami Warning Had Residents Scrambling for High Ground After M7.3 Quake
Jul 18 2025 // Communities along a 700-mile stretch of Alaska’s southern coast ordered residents to higher ground after a powerful offshore earthquake Wednesday, but officials quickly downgraded and then canceled a tsunami warning...
High Temperatures, Wildfire Smoke May Trigger Protections for Washington Workers
Jul 15 2025 // Worker safety regulators in Washington are warning businesses that temperatures and wildfire smoke are making for hazardous conditions for outdoor workers. The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries issued a...
Insured Losses From US Hurricanes Could Rise by 50% With Global Warming
Jul 15 2025 // Insured losses from U.S. hurricanes could rise by nearly 50% under a 2°C (3.6°F) global warming scenario, according to MS Amlin, the Lloyd’s global re/insurer. A peer-reviewed study published in the Journal of...
Unhealthy Smoke From Canadian Wildfires Blankets Upper Midwest
Jul 14 2025 // Much of the Upper Midwest on Saturday was dealing with swaths of unhealthy air because of drifting smoke from Canadian wildfires, covering the northern region of the U.S. at a time when people want to be enjoying lakes,...
Wildfire Destroyed Historic Grand Canyon Lodge After Being Allowed to Burn
Jul 14 2025 // A wildfire raging along the Grand Canyon’s North Rim that leveled a historic lodge erupted over the weekend after burning for more than a week, raising scrutiny over the National Park Service’s decision not to...
