Latest Natural Disasters Headlines
All the headlines from our Natural Disasters Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Earthquake Response Legislation Passes Oklahoma House Panel
Feb 19 2016 // Legislation that reaffirms the Oklahoma Corporation’s Commission’s authority to respond to emergencies involving oil and natural gas production in the state, including drilling-related earthquakes, has been...
Tornadoes Batter Multiple Southeast States
Feb 18 2016 // Weather service experts are assessing damage from storms that caused problems in several Southeast states. At least six south Alabama counties suffered damage from storms on Monday. The Johnsonville Volunteer Fire...
Sierra Club Lawsuit Claims Fracking Contributing to Oklahoma Earthquakes
Feb 16 2016 // Sierra Club weighed into the controversy over fracking and increased earthquake risk with a lawsuit accusing a Chesapeake Energy Corp. unit, Devon Energy Production Co. and New Dominion LLC of triggering tremors in...
M4.1 Earthquake Hits Hawaii’s Big Island
Feb 16 2016 // A magnitude-4.1 earthquake jolted the southern flank of Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano. The U.S. Geological Survey the quake last week was centered about 26 miles south of Hilo on the Big Island. It hit at 9:23 a.m. There...
Buildings, Tractors Burn in Louisiana Wildfires
Feb 12 2016 // Louisiana state forestry officials reported another wildfire in Natchitoches Parish, along Louisiana Highway 117 southwest of Natchitoches. Firefighters were dispatched to the scene after a building fire spread into a...
U.S. Victims of Mexican Drug Gangs Sue HSBC Bank Under Anti-Terrorism Act
Feb 10 2016 // Families of U.S. citizens murdered by drug gangs in Mexico sued HSBC Holdings Plc, claiming the bank can be held responsible for the deaths because it let cartels launder billions of dollars to operate their...
Earthquakes May Be the ‘800-Pound Gorilla’ in Oklahoma Legislature
Feb 8 2016 // The power and frequency of earthquakes in Oklahoma have been increasing, but the Legislature has done little to try to curb the temblors that scientists have linked to the underground disposal of oil and gas drilling...
Death Toll Rises from Taiwan Earthquake; Chip-Making Plants to Re-Open Quickly
Feb 8 2016 // The number of confirmed deaths in a weekend earthquake in Taiwan edged up to 37, with the final toll estimated to be much higher as more than a hundred people were still reported missing. Efforts to dig through collapsed...
$1.4M from Oklahoma’s Emergency Fund Tapped for Earthquake Research
Feb 8 2016 // Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin approved the use of nearly $1.4 million from the state’s emergency fund to go to groups researching earthquakes. The fund is set aside for the state’s response to natural disasters. It...
Record Western Wildfires a Contrast in Otherwise Quiet Year for U.S. Natural Disasters
Feb 8 2016 // It was a relatively quiet year for natural disasters – except for those living in the Western United States, according to property data provider CoreLogic, in its annual Natural Hazard Risk Summary and Analysis, released...
Numerous Tornadoes Strike Southeast, Damage More Than 90 Homes
Feb 5 2016 // The National Weather Service says at least four tornadoes struck rural areas of western Alabama on Tuesday. NWS reports four tornadoes also touched down Tuesday in eastern Mississippi. Officials say an EF2 tornado struck...
Source of Devastating 1964 Alaska Tsunami Discovered
Feb 4 2016 // Researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey have solved a 50-year natural science mystery: the undersea source of tsunami waves that devastated a remote Alaska village following the 1964 Great Alaska Earthquake. Underwater...
Tornadoes Damage Mississippi, Alabama Communities
Feb 4 2016 // Tornadoes touched down in Mississippi and Alabama as thunderstorms swept through the area Tuesday, while a powerful snowstorm buried parts of Colorado and Nebraska in more than a foot of snow before crawling into the Upper...
West Texas Wildfire Destroys 7 Homes
Feb 2 2016 // An official says a wildfire destroyed seven homes in a rural area near the West Texas town of Eula. Meanwhile, a wildfire burned almost 3 square miles of ranch land north of Amarillo. The fires, which both started on Jan....
Oklahoma Governor OKs $1.4M in State Funds for Earthquake Research
Jan 31 2016 // Gov. Mary Fallin approved the use of nearly $1.4 million in state emergency funds for state agencies working to reduce the increasing number of earthquakes that have been linked to the disposal of oil and gas wastewater in...
Florida Tornado Tosses Vehicle Driving on Turnpike
Jan 29 2016 // A tornado picked up a southbound vehicle on Florida’s Turnpike near Fort Lauderdale Wednesday morning and dropped it in the northbound lane as a line of severe storms hit the area, officials said. They said the...
Record Western Wildfires a Contrast in Otherwise Quiet Year for U.S. Natural Disasters
Jan 28 2016 // It was a relatively quiet year for natural disasters – except for those living in the Western U.S. Property data provider CoreLogic today released its annual Natural Hazard Risk Summary and Analysis. The report shows...
Texas Governor Seeks Federal Disaster Help after Tornadoes
Jan 28 2016 // Gov. Greg Abbott has requested a federal disaster declaration for some Texas counties after deadly late-December blizzards and tornadoes. Abbott on Jan. 26 announced the request for individual assistance for people in...
Insurance Department Tally on California Wildfires $1B
Jan 26 2016 // Damage from two destructive Northern California wildfires that killed six and sent thousands fleeing their homes topped $1 billion in insured losses, according to a preliminary estimate by the state’s insurance...
EU Security Chiefs Warn that Terrorist Attacks Highly Likely in Europe
Jan 26 2016 // Islamic State and other militants are very likely to attempt big new attacks in Europe following those in Paris, the EU’s police agency said on Monday, echoing previous warnings by senior security officials. The...
