Latest Natural Disasters Headlines
All the headlines from our Natural Disasters Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Southeast Louisiana Hit by Severe Storms, Tornadoes
Feb 20 2017 // The National Weather Service confirmed that an EF3 tornado on the enhanced Fujita scale, with winds between 136 mph and 165 mph, touched down in East New Orleans on Feb. 7. The twister was reported to have caused...
Texas Governor Deems Hailstorm Litigation ‘Lawsuit Abuse’
Feb 20 2017 // In his state of the state address, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott gave a boost to the insurance industry’s effort to get legislation passed that would place limits on post-hailstorm litigation. Calling lawsuits against...
U.S. Estimates Hurricane Matthew Damage to Recreational Boats at $110M
Feb 20 2017 // Hurricane Matthew, which threatened four coastal states as it corkscrewed through the Atlantic in early October, caused an estimated $110 million in damage to recreational boats, according to Boat Owners Association of The...
Colombia’s Insurance Regulator Approves Use of AIR’s Earthquake Model
Feb 15 2017 // Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide (AIR) announced that its earthquake model for Colombia has been approved by the country’s insurance regulator, the Superintendencia Financiera de Colombia, for use by domestic...
At Least 7 Injured by Confirmed Tornado in Southeast Georgia
Feb 14 2017 // Experts have confirmed a tornado plowed through two southeast Georgia counties where mobile homes were destroyed and several people were injured. The National Weather Service reported Friday a survey team found a tornado...
Talk Expected to Turn to Earthquakes at Tornado Summit in Oklahoma
Feb 13 2017 // Hundreds of top meteorologists and disaster recovery experts will converge on Oklahoma City this week for a national tornado summit, though much of the discussion is expected to focus on temblors, not twisters. The annual...
Fighting Massive 2016 Wildfire Cost Kansas County $1.5M
Feb 13 2017 // Firefighting costs hit $1.5 million in the county hardest hit by a massive wildfire along the Kansas-Oklahoma border last year. Jerry McNamar, emergency management director for Kansas’ Barber County, said he’s...
California Earthquake Authority Promotes Coombes, Schneider
Feb 10 2017 // The California Earthquake Authority has named Todd Coombes chief insurance and technology officer. The CEA also named Kellie Schneider chief operations officer. The moves follow the retirement at the end of January of Bob...
Central Texas Now Has Air Tanker Base to Help Fight Wildfires
Feb 10 2017 // State Rep. John Cyrier (Lockhart) announced the establishment of a portable air tanker base at Austin Bergstrom International Airport (ABIA) capable of equipping large, Type 1 air tankers to drop fire retardant during...
New Orleans Mayor: 940 Homes Damaged by Half-Mile Wide Tornado
Feb 10 2017 // Dwight Powell lost his Lexus to the massive tornado that injured 33 people and destroyed or seriously damaged 940 properties on a half-mile wide rampage through two miles of east New Orleans. He had just parked it inside...
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...
Tornadoes Across Southeast Louisiana Cause Widespread Damage
Feb 8 2017 // The National Weather Service confirmed that an EF3 tornado touched down in East New Orleans on Feb. 7. The twister was reported to have caused widespread damage and forced around 100 people from their homes. NOLA.com...
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...
EPA to Oklahoma Officials: Do More to Curb Earthquakes
Feb 6 2017 // The Environmental Protection Agency told Oklahoma regulators last November to do more to protect the state from a surge in earthquake activity that scientists have linked to the underground disposal of oil and gas...
Tennessee Wildfire Insurance Claims Hit $842M
Feb 6 2017 // Tennessee state officials said last month that insurance claims have topped $842 million in the deadly eastern Tennessee wildfires that burned thousands of buildings. The Knoxville News Sentinel reported the number,...
Texas Governor Calls for Legislation to Rein in Hailstorm Litigation
Feb 2 2017 // In his state of the state address, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott gave a boost to the insurance industry’s effort to get legislation passed that would place limits on post-hailstorm litigation. Calling lawsuits against...
Earthquake Felt Widely in Anchorage Region of Alaska
Feb 1 2017 // A moderate earthquake struck Tuesday that was widely felt in the Anchorage, Alaska area, but there were no reports of damage. The Alaska Earthquake Center says the magnitude-5.2 temblor struck at 12:38 a.m. and was...
New Tsunami Warning System Could Add Vital Minutes of Warning for Indonesia
Feb 1 2017 // Indonesia’s tsunami detection system, made up of seafloor sensors that communicate with transmitting buoys on the surface, has been rendered useless by vandals and lack of funding. Now Indonesian and U.S. scientists...
North Carolina to Receive $198M in Federal Grant for Hurricane Matthew Relief
Feb 1 2017 // North Carolina has been officially awarded nearly $200 million from the federal government for Hurricane Matthew relief that Congress approved last month in a larger spending agreement. Gov. Roy Cooper’s office says...
Mississippi Estimates More Than $1M in Timber Damaged by Tornado
Jan 31 2017 // More than $1 million worth of timber was destroyed by the tornado that hit Lamar, Forrest and Perry counties. The Mississippi Forestry Commission announced the estimate Friday based on aerial damage assessments. The...
