Latest Natural Disasters Headlines
All the headlines from our Natural Disasters Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Alaska’s 24/7 Earthquake Monitors on Budget Chopping Block
May 5 2017 // Alaska might lose its 24/7 earthquake monitors due to budget cuts. The Juneau Empire reported that as of March 1, more than 25 percent of the Alaska Regional Seismic Network has been offline. Since 2013, staff has...
Study Warns of Rising Risk to Mobile Homes from Tornadoes
May 5 2017 // Tornadoes and mobile homes don’t mix to begin with, but throw in the volatility of climate change and the potential for massive property damage and deaths is even higher in coming decades, indicates a new study by...
Correction: Weekend Tornado Count in Mississippi Rises to 24
May 4 2017 // The National Weather Service says it has confirmed that at least 24 tornadoes hit Mississippi during storms on Sunday. Surveyors are expected to continue examining damage Wednesday. So far, meteorologists have confirmed...
California’s Sherpa Wildfire Was Accidental, Authorities Say
May 4 2017 // Authorities say a fire that blazed through miles of California coast last summer was sparked by a man trying to douse a burning log. The Santa Barbara County Fire Department said this week that the Sherpa Fire last June...
Oklahoma Tornado Shelter Company Owner Faces Felony Embezzlement Charges
May 2 2017 // Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter has filed seven felony counts of embezzlement against William Stephens, who owns Muskogee-based Tornado King Shelters. After the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Unit...
Strong Storms Hit Alabama On Anniversary of Deadly 2011 Tornado Outbreak
May 1 2017 // The National Weather Service has sent out teams to look for damage and confirm where tornadoes might have touched down in the state. Al.com reports that the weather service was sending survey teams to Montgomery, Lee, Pike...
Meteorologists Offer Conflicting Predictions on 2017 Atlantic Hurricane Season
May 1 2017 // Most meteorologists forecast the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season will be less active than a year ago, with the number of named storms and hurricanes near average. A few meteorologists, however, expect this season to be more...
Feds to Use Fires to Lower Washington Wildfire Risks
May 1 2017 // To reduce the risks of wildfires, federal officials this spring are planning to conduct controlled burns on more than 9,000 acres of land in Washington state forests. The Seattle Times reported the fires planned in the...
Regulators in California Hit PG&E with $8.3M Fine for Deadly Wildfire
Apr 27 2017 // Regulators say they have fined Pacific Gas and Electric Co. $8.3 million for failing to maintain a power line that sparked a massive blaze in Northern California that destroyed 549 homes and killed two people. The...
Eastern Newfoundland Windstorm Costs Insurers US$32.5M
Apr 27 2017 // A windstorm that hit eastern Newfoundland on March 11, 2017 has resulted in almost C$45 million (US$32.5 million) in insured damage, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), quoting statistics from Catastrophe...
2 Tornadoes Confirmed in Mississippi From Weekend Weather
Apr 27 2017 // The National Weather Service confirms two tornadoes hit Mississippi’s northeast corner on Saturday. A survey shows that a twister with top winds of 90 mph (145 kph) struck Prentiss County around 2:35 p.m. The...
Official Says Georgia Wildfire Could Go On For 6 Months
Apr 26 2017 // A wildfire in Georgia that has scorched more than 70 square miles (180 square kilometers) of public lands near the Georgia-Florida state line could burn for the next six months unless heavy rains snuff out the flames...
Feds Will Use Fires to Lower Washington Wildfire Risks
Apr 24 2017 // To reduce the risks of wildfires, federal officials this spring are planning to conduct controlled burns on more than 9,000 acres of land in Washington state forests. The Seattle Times reported the fires planned in the...
How Meteorologists View 2017 Atlantic Hurricane Season
Apr 21 2017 // Most meteorologists forecast the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season will be less active than a year ago, with the number of named storms and hurricanes near average. A few meteorologists, however, expect this season to be more...
Texas ‘Hailstorm’ Bill Passed by Senate Committee
Apr 20 2017 // Texas’ so-called “hailstorm” bill has passed out of the Texas Senate Business & Commerce Committee, its author reports. Senate Bill 10 by committee Chairman Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, is...
Tornado, Hail Losses Hurt Travelers in Q1
Apr 20 2017 // Travelers Cos. was burned again by Mother Nature. Alan Schnitzer has been contending with volatile weather since becoming chief executive officer in late 2015, extending a trend of recent years in which storm seasons last...
XL Catlin Boosts Terrorism Insurance Limits to $250M
Apr 20 2017 // XL Catlin has raised its available terrorism insurance coverage limits to $250 million from $200 million, a 25 percent increase. XL Catlin’s standalone terrorism insurance policy helps U.S. businesses address...
Officials Warn of Possible Evacuations in Georgia as Okefenokee Wildfire Spreads
Apr 19 2017 // Georgia residents on the western edge of the Okefenokee Swamp have been warned to prepare for potential evacuations from an approaching wildfire that has burned more than 30 square miles (80 square kilometers) of public...
Insured Damage for Southern Ontario Windstorm Estimated at US$73.4M
Apr 19 2017 // A windstorm that hit parts of southern Ontario on March 8, 2017 has caused almost C$100 million (US$73.4 million) in insured damage, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), which quoted a report from Catastrophe...
Florida Wildfires Burn More Than 126K Acres So Far in 2017
Apr 19 2017 // At least 126,000 acres have burned in wildfires across Florida since January, surpassing the five-year average of acreage burned in a typical year, officials said. Florida’s fire season peaks this month, during the...
