Latest Natural Disasters Headlines
All the headlines from our Natural Disasters Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Colorado Researchers Predict 8 Atlantic Hurricanes, 4 Major
Jun 4 2008 // Weather researcher William Gray’s team is calling for eight hurricanes in the Atlantic this year, four of them major. The forecast calls for a very active season, with 15 named storms. The revised outlook from the...
Meteorologists Confirm Tornado Touched Down in Northwest Ohio
Jun 4 2008 // Two of the three tornadoes that traveled through northwest Ohio early on May 31 destroyed homes and left a path of debris, meteorologists said. The National Weather Service said one tornado with winds up to 130 mph touched...
RMS Launches New U.S. Hurricane Loss Index
Jun 3 2008 // Catastrophe risk modeling firm Risk Management Solutions (RMS) has launched a new index for assessing insured industry losses from U.S. hurricanes. Named the Paradex U.S. Hurricane, it combines actual wind speeds at...
After 3-Year Lull, Mississippi, Alabama Gird for New Hurricane Season
Jun 2 2008 // After Hurricane Katrina struck the upper Gulf Coast in 2005, even grizzled storm veterans became edgy when the opening of hurricane season rolled around. Blue tarps covering Katrina-damaged homes are far fewer now, but as...
Tornado Warning Sirens Send Illinois Lawmakers Running for Cover
Jun 2 2008 // Tornado warning sirens chased lawmakers to the statehouse basement, a semitrailer was blown from a roadway and homes and an airport building were damaged as severe storms battered parts of Illinois and Indiana on late on...
Coastal Growth from Texas to N.C. Lends Urgency to Hurricane Forecasts
Jun 2 2008 // The rapid pace of development along hurricane-prone coasts is adding a new level of urgency for forecasters to more accurately pinpoint potential storm impact zones, the director of the National Hurricane Center...
Colorado Residents Cleaning Up After Tornadoes, Hail
Jun 2 2008 // Colorado residents affected by powerful storms that struck the northern part of the state about 80 miles north of Denver on May 22, 2008, are beginning to sort through the wreckage and pick up the pieces. According to the...
Scientists Predict $200B in Damage From Southern California Earthquake
Jun 2 2008 // The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the California Geological Survey (CGS) are predicting a 7.8 magnitude earthquake in Southern California — similar to the recent earthquake in China — would kill 1,800 people,...
Starr Foundation Pledges $1 Million for China Earthquake Relief
May 30 2008 // The Starr Foundation of New York and Starr International Foundation of Switzerland have announced a joint grant to the China Charity Federation totaling $1 million for earthquake relief in China. The donation was...
Deadly Iowa Tornado Rated State’s Strongest in 32 Years
May 29 2008 // A tornado that leveled half a town in northeast Iowa and killed seven people was the strongest to hit the state in 32 years, the National Weather Service said on May 27. The twister, three-quarters of a mile wide with...
Insured Damage from Recent Georgia Tornado Tops $40M, State Reports
May 29 2008 // State officials say damage from the tornado that hit north metro Atlanta last week now totals more than $40 million. The tornado that touched down on May 20 caused extensive damage in Cherokee, Cobb, north Fulton and...
For Emergency Planners, Hurricane Forecasts Have Limited Value
May 29 2008 // Each April, weather wizard William Gray emerges from his burrow deep in the Rocky Mountains to offer his forecast for the six-month hurricane season that starts June 1. And the news media are there, breathlessly awaiting...
Hurricane Season Begins June 1; Will Odds be in Texas’ Favor?
May 28 2008 // With hurricane season beginning June 1, Texans may be able to hold on to the hope that the odds are stacked for them. If historical experience for the past two decades holds true, Texas won’t see a hurricane hit its...
Colorado Tornado, Hail Damage Adds Up To Estimated $147M in Damage
May 28 2008 // Colorado residents in Windsor and surrounding communities are starting the process of repairing and rebuilding their homes, following May 22’s tornadoes and hail and wind storm. Meanwhile insurance companies have...
Expect Above Average Atlantic Hurricane Season, Say Forecasters
May 27 2008 // The nation’s annual forecast about how many hurricanes the Atlantic Ocean will churn up is now more like the daily weather report. Forecasters added probabilities to their 2008 report. It’s the same sort of...
ACE Contributes $1 Million to China Earthquake Relief
May 27 2008 // The ACE Group of Companies announced that the ACE Foundation – International has made a $1 million contribution to the Red Cross Society of China to support emergency relief efforts following the earthquake that...
Tornadoes Kill 1 Child in Minnesota; Iowa Twister Kills 6
May 27 2008 // While most of the country was celebrating Memorial Day with picnics and parades, people in two states were fighting to stay alive. A town official says a 2-year-old child has died and 20 are missing after a severe storm...
Colorado Residents Cleaning Up After Tornadoes, Hail
May 23 2008 // Colorado residents affected by powerful storms are beginning to sort through the wreckage and pick up the pieces. According to the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association, it is too early to estimate the total...
Weather Officials Confirm Tornado Touched Down in South Carolina
May 23 2008 // The National Weather Service confirmed a tornado touched down in Bamberg County on May 20. Forecasters say the twister had winds up to 90 mph and moved from just north of Olar to near Ehrhardt in the late afternoon. The...
Alabama and Mississippi Officials Ready for Hurricane Response
May 23 2008 // With no Gulf Coast hurricane since Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Alabama and Mississippi officials have worried that residents and tourists could become complacent about the seriousness of orders to flee the next disaster...
