Latest Natural Disasters Headlines
All the headlines from our Natural Disasters Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Hurricane Center Updating Storm Surge Maps for North Carolina’s Outer Banks
May 27 2016 // New storm surge maps for the Outer Banks of North Carolina will be available this summer. The Virginian-Pilot of Norfolk reported that the National Hurricane Center will release the maps to predict where and how deep...
Texas’ Coastal Wind Insurer Expects $4.9B in Funds for 2016 Hurricane Season
May 27 2016 // While its reinsurance plans for the 2016 hurricane season haven’t yet been nailed down, Texas’ insurance company of last resort for wind and hail along the Texas coast expects to have around $4.9 billion in...
Tornadoes Destroy Homes in Western Kansas, Damage Assessment Begins
May 26 2016 // Crews were evaluating the damage Wednesday after tornadoes destroyed several homes and left two people critically injured in western Kansas as a series of severe storms swept across the Plains. Meanwhile, one person...
Oklahoma Commissioner: 4 Insurers Have 55% of Earthquake Market
May 25 2016 // Data released at a May 24 hearing to determine the competitiveness of earthquake insurance coverage in Oklahoma shows that four insurance companies have 55 percent of the market in the state. That’s a concern for...
Oklahoma Regulators Warn Insurers on Earthquake Coverage Hikes
May 25 2016 // Oklahoma regulators grappling with a massive increase in small earthquakes in the state linked to growing oil and gas production said on May 24 they were concerned with spiking rates for earthquake insurance coverage and...
Oregon Transportation Needs Include Preparing for Earthquake Damage
May 25 2016 // A major fault off the Oregon Coast is expected to produce an earthquake, and transportation officials say preparing for that event needs to be a top priority. The Medford Mail Tribune reported a Cascadia Subduction Zone...
Canada’s Oil Sands Facilities Prepare to Restart as Wildfires Begin to Slow
May 25 2016 // All of the Canadian oil-sands facilities that workers fled last week as a wildfire spread are being allowed to prepare for restart as cool, humid weather has helped contain the inferno. Alberta lifted mandatory evacuation...
Citizens Board Approves $2.46B Risk Transfer Program for 2016 Hurricane Season
May 25 2016 // Florida’s Citizens Property Insurance Corporation’s Board of Governors has approved a $2.46 billion risk transfer program as the state heads into the 2016 hurricane season, the insurer said in a statement. By...
3 Tornadoes Reported in South Dakota
May 24 2016 // Severe storms that crossed South Dakota led to reports of at least three tornadoes, including one that caused damage. The National Weather Service says a tornado in Tripp County on Sunday evening prompted reports of downed...
Disaster Fraud Rampant After Floods, Hurricanes
May 24 2016 // This year, extensive flooding has already affected parts of Texas and Louisiana. With more rain producing floods in the forecast for the southern part of the U.S. this spring, the likelihood of disaster fraud...
Earthquake Resilience & The Big One
May 23 2016 // Most people aren’t prepared for the big one. If there was one common theme at a three-day earthquake conference in downtown Long Beach, Calif., that was it. The National Earthquake Conference that took place in early...
Insurers Limit Earthquake Exposure in Oklahoma
May 23 2016 // As the number of earthquakes in Oklahoma exploded into the hundreds in the last few years, nearly a dozen insurance companies moved to limit their exposure, often at the expense of homeowners, a Reuters examination has...
Industry Partners with University of Alabama on Tornado Preparedness Guide
May 23 2016 // The Alabama Center for Insurance Information and Research at The University of Alabama Culverhouse College of Commerce has partnered with the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America, the Alabama Department of...
Climate Change Will Raise the Cost of Canada’s Natural Disasters: Insurers
May 19 2016 // Canada will have to set aside more money to deal with natural disasters like wildfires, storms and floods as climate change starts to bite, the head of the country’s property insurance industry group said on...
Alberta Wildfires Could Cost $7B with Minimal Insurer Credit Hit: Ratings Agencies
May 17 2016 // The Fort McMurray wildfires, which have been raging through northern Alberta, Canada since May 1, are likely to be the costliest natural disaster in Canadian history, according to recent reports issued by catastrophe...
Alberta Wildfires Spread North, Threatening Oil Sands Facilities, Workers’ Camps
May 17 2016 // Wildfires raging across northern Alberta for more than two weeks have come to within a kilometer of an Enbridge Inc. oil-sands transportation terminal as warm weather and wind spread the flames, while workers were...
Florida Hurricane Fund Financially Sound, Ready for Storm Season
May 16 2016 // Florida’s continued lucky streak when it comes to dodging hurricanes is helping a key state fund reach its best financial shape ever in the two decades it has been in place. The state-created fund known as the...
Palomar Specialty Expands Residential Earthquake Product to Oregon, Washington
May 13 2016 // Palomar Specialty Insurance Co., in partnership with Arrowhead General Insurance Agency, Inc. and TriCoast Insurance Services, LLC, has expanded its Value Select Residential Earthquake Insurance Program into Oregon and...
Tornado Cleanup Underway in Kentucky
May 13 2016 // Business and home owners have begun cleaning up after severe storms spawned a tornado in western Kentucky and left at least 10 people with minor injuries. Graves County Sheriff Dewayne Redmon said a campus with a local...
Tornadoes Survival Tips from Texas to Nebraska
May 11 2016 // Storms swept through the nation’s midsection Monday, spawning numerous tornadoes. While tornadoes can form any time weather conditions are right, the area from Texas to Nebraska typically sees tornadoes between April...
