Latest Natural Disasters Headlines
All the headlines from our Natural Disasters Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Officials Blame Santa Barbara Wildfire on Bonfire
Nov 20 2008 // A bonfire built by college students and never fully extinguished was responsible for the massive wildfire in Santa Barbara that destroyed 210 homes, many of them multimillion-dollar properties, authorities said. An...
Majority of Southern California Wildfires Contained
Nov 19 2008 // Firefighters are still working on containing two of the fires burning in Southern California. In the past five days, more than 42,000 acres have burned, and close to 1,000 properties have been destroyed, according to CAL...
North Carolina Still Tallying Costs of Deadly Weekend Tornado
Nov 19 2008 // North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley said more than 60 homes were either damaged or destroyed by a fatal tornado in North Carolina over the weekend, but the financial costs still were unclear. Easley met with officials in Kenly...
Firefighters Make Gains on Southern California Wildfires
Nov 18 2008 // Firefighters made progress on extinguishing the fires burning in Southern California yesterday, thanks to reduced wind conditions. To date, three of the five fires have been contained, although more than 44,000 acres have...
Rate Change Granted for Texas Windstorm Insurance Association
Nov 18 2008 // Commercial and residential rates for policies written through the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) will rise in February when rate increases approved by the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) go into...
Southern California Battles Devastating Wildfires
Nov 17 2008 // Southern Californians weathered a fourth day of devastation on Sunday, as wind-blasted wildfires destroyed hundreds of residences, shut down major freeways and forced thousands of residents in the path of flames to flee to...
Minor Earthquake Felt in Maine
Nov 17 2008 // People in western Maine were given a slight jolt Thursday when a minor earthquake struck in Rumford. According to the Weston Observatory at Boston College, the earthquake happened at 5:26 a.m. and had a magnitude of...
La. Citizens OKs $35M Settlement; Pays $90M in Hurricane Claims
Nov 17 2008 // The board of Louisiana’s last-resort insurance company approved paying up to $35 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging that the firm took too long to pay off policyholders’ claims after the 2005...
Successive Hurricanes: Potential Windfall for Insureds?
Nov 16 2008 // The 2008 hurricane season came very close to presenting, on a large scale, the potential quandary caused by successive losses. On Sept.1, 2008, Hurricane Gustav came ashore and caused substantial damage from the Louisiana...
Study: California Earthquake Could Cause $200 Billion in Losses
Nov 16 2008 // If a magnitude 7.0 earthquake occurred on California’s Hayward Fault, it would result in economic losses between $210 billion and $235 billion, with only up to $30 billion likely to be insured, according to a study...
Millions in Southern California Take Part in Earthquake Drill
Nov 13 2008 // At 10 a.m. this morning, millions of Southern Californians are expected to millions of people in homes, schools, businesses, government offices, and public places are expected to drop, cover, and hold on, in what is...
South Carolina Holds Earthquake Drill
Nov 13 2008 // The ground may not be shaking, but emergency officials want South Carolina residents to be ready if and when it does. An earthquake drill was held Wednesday as part of South Carolina Earthquake Awareness Week. Emergency...
Texas House Panel Studies Response to Hurricane Ike
Nov 12 2008 // Hurricane Ike left thousands homeless, millions without power and destroyed houses and businesses along the Texas Gulf Coast. But it also gave state and local governments a chance to learn from their mistakes during a...
Deadline for Hurricane Gustav Disaster Funds Nears in Mississippi
Nov 11 2008 // Nov. 25, 2008, is the deadline to register for federal and state Hurricane Gustav disaster aid, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Mississippi Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Small Business...
Deadlines Loom in Louisiana for Post-Hurricane FEMA Assistance
Nov 10 2008 // The Louisiana Recovery Authority says even people who have insurance should register with FEMA if they were affected by hurricanes Gustav or Ike – and they need to do it soon. The deadline is Dec. 3 for people...
Hawaii Gets New Hurricane Forecaster
Nov 10 2008 // The National Weather Service’s Honolulu Forecast Office is getting a new director of operations. Richard Knabb is currently a hurricane specialist at the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Fla. He will manage the...
New Maps Reveal Evansville’s Earthquake Risk
Nov 6 2008 // The U.S. Geological Survey is completing maps that will indicate earthquake hazards in the Evansville area. Geophysicist Oliver Boyd tells the Evansville Courier & Press that he hopes the final maps will be ready next...
Small Earthquake Reported in East Tennessee
Nov 3 2008 // The U.S. Geological Survey reported a small earthquake occurred in East Tennessee, but emergency officials say no damage has been reported. The agency recorded the earthquake was centered near Maryville and occurred at...
Small Earthquakes Hits Arkansas County, Dallas Area
Nov 3 2008 // Federal officials say a 2.7-magnitude earthquake struck on Nov. 1 near the community of Magnet Cove in Hot Spring County, Arkansas. The U.S. Geological Survey reports the earthquake hit three miles northeast of Rockport...
$395 Million Approved for Flood, Tornado Recovery in Iowa
Nov 2 2008 // Iowa communities are getting help recovering from a series of natural disasters this year with nearly $395 million in state and federal funding. The money will go to at least 3,200 projects. The biggest chunk of it, about...
