Latest Natural Disasters Headlines
All the headlines from our Natural Disasters Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Hurricane Lorenzo Lashes Azores, Causing Minor Damage, with Ireland as Next Stop
Oct 3 2019 // Hurricane Lorenzo powered across the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday, lashing the Azores Islands with heavy rains, powerful winds and high waves but causing only minor damage, according to authorities. The Azores Civil...
11 Earthquakes Recently Recorded in Kansas’ Jewell County
Oct 2 2019 // The Kansas Geological Survey reports 11 earthquakes were recorded in a northern Kansas county last weekend. The agency’s data shows the cluster of quakes struck north and east of Randall in Jewell County Saturday and...
Texas Mutual Commits $5M to Help Tropical Storm Imelda-Impacted Policyholders
Oct 2 2019 // Austin-based workers’ compensation carrier, Texas Mutual Insurance Co., is offering a grant of $5 million for policyholders affected by Tropical Storm Imelda. The grant is intended to support the recovery of business...
Update: Hurricane Lorenzo Loses Power but Swells in Size as It Heads Toward Ireland
Oct 2 2019 // Hurricane Lorenzo, the largest storm ever to roam the Eastern Atlantic, is forecast to strike the heart of Ireland’s west coast within days carrying tropical-strength winds, driving rain and a huge storm surge. Once...
11 South Carolina Counties to Receive Federal Aid for Hurricane Dorian Damage
Oct 2 2019 // President Donald Trump has issued a declaration approving specific federal assistance for South Carolina areas affected by early September’s Hurricane Dorian. The White House on Monday ordered that federal aid be...
Tornado, Hail, Snow Sweep Through California
Oct 1 2019 // The National Weather Service confirmed that a tornado touched down in a California field as thunderstorms swept through the central part of the state. Cellphone video posted online shows the towering vortex spinning...
Typhoon Mitag Lashes Eastern China, Heads to South Korea
Oct 1 2019 // After lashing parts of Taiwan and Japan’s southernmost Ryukyu Islands on Monday, Typhoon Mitag is passing eastern China today and then takes aim at South Korea and the remainder of Japan later this week, according to...
Wildfire Risk in Georgia Increasing Amid Southern Drought
Oct 1 2019 // The ongoing drought has made outdoor burning in Georgia more dangerous than previous years, state officials said. In the past three months, the Georgia Forestry Commission says firefighters have responded to – on average...
Council Recommends $4B Plan to Safeguard Oregon from Wildfires
Sep 30 2019 // A task force created by Oregon Gov. Kate Brown says climate change, overstocked forests and understaffed fire teams have placed Oregonians in extreme risk, necessitating a multi-billion-dollar program to safeguard the...
Insured Losses from Typhoon Faxai Estimated at US$5 Billion to US$9 Billion: RMS
Sep 30 2019 // RMS, the Newark, Calif.-based risk modeling and analytics firm, has estimated that the insured loss from Typhoon Faxai will be between $5.0 and $9.0 billion (¥ 500 to ¥950 billion). This estimate includes property damage...
Lawsuit Says Colorado Railroad Ignited Fires Prior to Wildfire
Sep 27 2019 // A federal lawsuit says nearly 50 fires in Colorado were ignited by a railroad company in the weeks leading up to a major wildfire. The Durango Herald reported Tuesday that The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad...
Florida City Faces $200M in Repairs to Sewage, Water Line After Hurricane Michael
Sep 27 2019 // The biggest city devastated by Hurricane Michael last fall has had a recent series of sewage leaks, and local officials say it will cost more than $200 million to repair its sewage and water systems. Television station...
Death Toll from Northern California Wildfire Back Down to 85
Sep 26 2019 // The number of those who died in California’s deadliest wildfire is back down to 85 after authorities determined that a bone fragment previously classified as unidentified belongs to a victim named in January. The...
Minor Earthquake Confirmed in Northern Utah’s Box Elder County
Sep 26 2019 // A minor earthquake shook was confirmed in parts of Box Elder County in northern Utah. County spokesman Mitch Zundel said there were many reports of people feeling the quake of magnitude 3.9 at 10:15 a.m. MDT on Tuesday,...
RCV, ACV Policy Changes Are Coming, Texas Windstorm Insurer Says
Sep 26 2019 // The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association is alerting agents about an important, upcoming change to the policy conditions that determine how covered losses are settled. Current law says the type of loss settlement —...
Texas Windstorm Insurer: New Laws Bring Organizational Changes
Sep 25 2019 // The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) reports that working to implement new laws that change how TWIA does business and serves policyholders. The association recently issued the following update on a few...
PG&E Cuts Power to 48K California Customers to Avert Wildfire Risk
Sep 25 2019 // Pacific Gas & Electric cut power to 48,200 customers in seven counties in California’s Sierra Foothills and North Bay overnight because of high fire danger. The majority of those affected by the power outage,...
Tropical Storm Jerry Takes Aim at Bermuda, Just Days After Humberto’s Battering
Sep 25 2019 // Bermudians secured homes and businesses on Tuesday as they prepared for the arrival of Tropical Storm Jerry just a few days after Hurricane Humberto battered the archipelago and briefly knocked out power for most...
Insurers Continue to Cover Beach Resorts Despite Spate of Caribbean Hurricanes
Sep 25 2019 // Frenchman’s Reef, the largest resort on St. Thomas, was smashed by Hurricane Irma, which breached roofs, caved in walls and felled trees across the oceanfront property. Two years later, the hotel remains closed as...
Men and Women Respond Differently When Natural Disasters Strike, Researchers Say
Sep 25 2019 // Women are quicker to take cover or prepare to evacuate during an emergency, but often have trouble convincing the men in their life to do so, suggests a new University of Colorado Boulder study of how gender influences...
