Latest Natural Disasters Headlines
All the headlines from our Natural Disasters Topic Page, ordered by recency.
3 Dead as Tornado Hits France
Aug 6 2008 // A fierce but short-lived tornado has left at least three people dead in northern France. Inhabitants of four regions are assessing the damage after the tornado collapsed some homes and uprooted trees along its path. The...
Damage From Tropical Storm Edouard Minimal
Aug 6 2008 // Tropical Storm Edouard hit the Texas Gulf coast east of Galveston Aug. 5 with strong winds and heavy rain, but did little more than soak the travelers who came to relax on the tourist town’s beaches. The National...
Tropical Storm Edouard Heads for Texas/Louisiana Coast
Aug 4 2008 // A swiftly developing Tropical Storm Edouard is expected to make landfall very near the upper Texas coast or the coast of southwestern Louisiana by Tuesday, Aug. 5, the National Hurricane Center reported. As of Monday...
Only 4 Homes Insured in North Dakota Area Hit by Tornado
Aug 4 2008 // The number of homes found damaged or destroyed in tornado-ravaged Rolette County in North Dakota continues to rise. The state Department of Emergency Services says 12 homes have been destroyed and 18 have been damaged in...
Damage Costs from Hurricane Dolly May Reach $750M
Aug 4 2008 // Catastrophe risk specialist RMS says the insurance bill for damage from Hurricane Dolly, which hit Southwest Texas on July 23, may go as high as $750 million, while Boston-based AIR World-wide estimates damages between...
Wildfires Rekindle Need for Private Fire Protection Efforts
Aug 4 2008 // As wildfires seemingly increase in frequency and severity of insured losses year after year, insurers are devising fire prevention methods to protect their client’s properties — including hiring private...
Tennessee Utility, College Get Federal Relief for Tornado Damage
Jul 30 2008 // The federal government approved $5.7 million in disaster assistance funding for two Tennessee institutions that suffered tornado damage, Gov. Phil Bredesen said. These grants are part of the federal Public Assistance...
State’s Building Code Helps Minimize Losses from California Earthquake
Jul 30 2008 // The moderate earthquake that struck Los Angeles late Tuesday (July 29) morning at 11:42am PDT has not caused major damage or serious injury, according to early eyewitness reports and the Los Angeles Fire Department. Based...
Calif. Earthquake Authority Prepared to Handle Claims; Expects Minor Damage
Jul 30 2008 // Only 12 percent of California homeowners currently own earthquake insurance policies, potentially leaving millions of Californians financially unprotected in the event of a catastrophic quake. Of the 12 percent of...
Californians Told to Expect Aftershocks Following Earthquake
Jul 30 2008 // Federal officials said they will continue to monitor and coordinate with California agencies regarding Tuesday’s 5.4 magnitude earthquake that struck just south of downtown Los Angeles. The Federal Emergency...
AIR Estimates Taiwan Typhoon Insured Losses under $100 Million
Jul 30 2008 // Catastrophe risk modeling firm AIR Worldwide has issued a bulletin indicating that insured losses in Taiwan from Typhoon Fung-Wong are unlikely to exceed $100 Million. Dr. Peter Sousounis, senior research scientist at AIR...
Hartford Insurance Results Dip in Q2 Due in Part to Tornado Claims
Jul 29 2008 // Hartford Financial Services Group Inc.’s earnings fell in the second quarter, hurt by claims from tornado damage. Operating earnings fell 9 percent to $696 million. Net income for the second quarter was down 13...
Damages from Hurricane Dolly May Reach $750 Million
Jul 28 2008 // Catastrophe risk specialist RMS says the insurance bill for damage from Hurricane Dolly, which hit Southwest Texas on July 23, may go as high as $750 million, while Boston-based AIR Worldwide estimates damages to come in...
New Hampshire Insurance Dept: Track Tornado Tree Damage
Jul 28 2008 // New Hampshire residents facing downed trees on their houses or in their yards from Thursday’s tornado could face some hefty bills. A typical homeowner’s insurance policy in New Hampshire covers only $1,000 for...
Calif. Wildfire Forces Evacuations West of Yosemite National Park
Jul 28 2008 // A fast-spreading fire burning near an entrance to Yosemite National Park near Midpines, Calif., forced the evacuations of 170 homes on Sunday and caused officials to cut power to the park. The fire grew from about 1.5...
Insurance Payments Fall Short of Repair Costs after Tennessee Tornado
Jul 25 2008 // Tennessee officials razed fairgrounds bleachers damaged by a tornado in Clarksville, Tennessee. Parks and Recreation Director Kevin Cowling said the tornado on May 3 moved parts of the concrete bleachers 2 inches. A...
Threat of Flooding Persists After Dolly Downgrades to Tropical Storm
Jul 25 2008 // Hurricane Dolly barreled into South Texas on Wednesday, July 23 lashing the coast with winds up to 100 mph (161 kph) and dumping heavy rain that flooded some low-lying areas but spared levees along the heavily populated...
Coastal Texas Begins Clean-up After Hurricane Dolly
Jul 25 2008 // Residents in south Texas on the coast have begun the tough job of cleaning up at Hurricane Dolly slammed into the coast on Wednesday, July 23. On Thursday power lines were still down, but according to news reports, many...
Utah Geologists Look for Earthquake Fault Clues
Jul 25 2008 // Utah State University geologists say a close look at a deep trench along the East Cache Fault has uncovered some good news: There’s no evidence of recent earthquakes along that section of the fault. USU geology...
Flooding Feared Along U.S.-Texas Border from Hurricane Dolly
Jul 24 2008 // After Hurricane Dolly unleashed a fury of damaging winds and wicked rain on the U.S.-Mexico coastline and diminished to a tropical storm, widespread flooding along the populous Rio Grande Valley became the top concern...
