Latest Natural Disasters Headlines
All the headlines from our Natural Disasters Topic Page, ordered by recency.
State Farm Targets NV Energy for Subrogation Over Reno Wildfire
Jul 29 2013 // State Farm Insurance plans to seek action against NV Energy for claims stemming from a November 2011 wildfire in Reno, Nev. sparked by arcing power lines. The wind-whipped fire destroyed 26 homes and damaged 17. It also...
Tropical Storm Flossie May Become First to Hit Hawaii Since 1992
Jul 29 2013 // Tropical Storm Flossie, which may become the first such system to hit Hawaii in 21 years, closed ports as it pounded parts of the state with “dangerous” surf. The storm, with top sustained winds of 50 miles (80...
Louisiana Parish not Responsible for Property Lost in Hurricane Fire
Jul 26 2013 // Jefferson Parish in Louisiana cannot be made to pay for belongings lost in a rented house that burned down at the height of Hurricane Gustav while the sheriff tried to put out the fire with a garden hose, a judge has...
1st Half 2013 Natural Disasters Cost $85 Billion – Aon Benfield
Jul 25 2013 // A mid-year natural disaster analysis from Impact Forecasting, the catastrophe model development center of excellence at Aon Benfield, puts economic losses from global natural disasters at $85 billion, higher than the $75...
Colorado Senators Push FEMA for Details On Wildfire Mitigation
Jul 24 2013 // Two senators are pushing the Federal Emergency Management Agency to detail its efforts to mitigate wildfires. Colorado Democrat Michael Bennet and Idaho Republican Mike Crapo (KRAY’-poh) also want FEMA to identify...
Oklahoma Agency Working to Reduce Earthquake Risks
Jul 24 2013 // The Oklahoma Geological Survey has begun work on plans to reduce the risk of oil-field work involving injection wells that some believe may be causing earthquakes. The Tulsa World reported that a summary report said the...
Shelter Permits Sought in Norman, Oklahoma after Tornadoes
Jul 23 2013 // Applications from Norman, Okla., residents looking to build storm shelters have increased sharply in the aftermath of deadly tornadoes that struck in Moore and other nearby areas of the Oklahoma City metro. The May 19 and...
AIR Reports on Offshore Earthquake Near Wellington, New Zealand
Jul 23 2013 // Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide has issued a report on the M6.5 earthquake that struck New Zealand’s Cook Strait, 54 km SSW of the capital city of Wellington, at a depth of 14 km [app. 8.7 miles] on July 21,...
Tornado Hits Ohio’s Ursuline College; No One Hurt
Jul 22 2013 // A tornado packing 110 mph winds hit Ursuline College in northeast Ohio early on July 20, collapsing a wall of the school’s athletic center and damaging other buildings but causing no injuries, officials said. The EF1...
Earthquake in China’s Gansu Province Kills 56, Injures 392, Xinhua Says
Jul 22 2013 // An earthquake in the northwestern Chinese province of Gansu killed at least 56 people and injured 392, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. The 6.6-magnitude quake struck at 7:45 a.m. local time in the city of Dingxi,...
Wildfires, Hail Take Toll on Colorado Homeowners Insurance
Jul 22 2013 // It’s safe to say there’s a lot going on in the homeowners insurance scene in Colorado, where homeowners insurance rates are likely to be on the rise for some time. Insured losses from the recent Black Forest...
Louisiana Clarifies Insured Loss Estimate from Hurricane Katrina
Jul 18 2013 // A recent report by financial website Kiplinger rated Louisiana as the most disaster prone state in the nation. News reports on this story have cited loss estimates of $3 billion for Hurricane Katrina and $2 billion for...
Montana Tornado Damages Property, No Injuries
Jul 18 2013 // Roosevelt County officials are assessing the damage done by a tornado that touched down about 20 miles north of Poplar, Mont. Emergency services coordinator Dan Sietsema says at least two farm sites were hit by the tornado...
Alabama Officials Practice for Hurricane Season
Jul 18 2013 // Alabama Emergency Management Agency officials received an early wake-up call Tuesday and were told that a hurricane named Juliet had made landfall about 2 a.m. near Pascagoula, Miss. Hurricane Juliet wasn’t real, but...
Report: Arizona Wildfire Grew Quickly, Was Erratic
Jul 17 2013 // A new report shows an Arizona wildfire that began with a lightning strike and caused little immediate concern because of its remote location and small size quickly grew into an inferno, leading officials to rapidly order...
Taiwan Braces for Direct Hit as Typhoon Soulik Approaches
Jul 12 2013 // Taiwan is bracing for a direct hit by Typhoon Soulik early tomorrow, prompting precautionary evacuations due to the risk of landslides, and airlines predicting high winds that would disrupt flights. Soulik may make...
Wildfires, Hail Take Toll on Colorado Homeowners Insurance
Jul 11 2013 // It’s safe to say there’s a lot going on in the homeowners insurance scene in Colorado, where homeowners insurance rates are likely to be on the rise for some time. Insured losses from the recently doused Black...
Taiwan Sounds Sea Warning as Severe Typhoon Soulik Approaches
Jul 11 2013 // Taiwan told people to clear the seas as a storm with winds gusting as fast as 227 kilometers (141 miles) per hour loomed off its eastern coast. Typhoon Soulik, a severe typhoon, approached Taiwan at 22 kilometers per hour...
Wildfire Nears Las Vegas Area
Jul 10 2013 // Fire crews burned forest undergrowth near homes in the mountains northwest of Las Vegas to protect them from one of two large Nevada wildfires while local casino owners offered rooms to evacuees. The wildfire burning...
Tropical Storm Chantal May Form in Atlantic This Week
Jul 7 2013 // Tropical Storm Chantal strengthened as it moved west across the Atlantic toward the Lesser Antilles, including the islands of Martinique and Saint Lucia, on a track that may take it east of Florida, the U.S. National...
