Latest Windstorm Headlines
All the headlines from our Windstorm Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Estimate of Insured Losses in North Texas Storms Reaches $300M
Apr 9 2014 // The storms that rolled across the Denton area in north Texas in early April are estimated to have caused $300 million in insured losses. The area was hit by softball size hail and three tornadoes. The thunderstorms erupted...
Oklahoma School Storm Shelter Proposal Passes Senate Committee
Apr 4 2014 // An Oklahoma Senate committee has passed a measure calling for a public vote to allow school districts a one-time increase on bonding capacity to pay for school safety upgrades like storm shelters and safe rooms. The Senate...
Large Hail, Tornadoes Pound Denton, Texas Area
Apr 4 2014 // An outbreak of severe thunderstorms north of Dallas, Texas, on Apr. 4 produced hurricane force winds, tornadoes and hail reported to be as large as grapefruits. Several communities are reporting extensive damage. Severe...
Alabama Braces for Possible Tornadoes
Apr 3 2014 // Forecasters say a pair of storm systems will bring the threat of isolated tornadoes to parts of Alabama. The National Weather Service expects severe weather to move into the state late Thursday into early Friday, with...
Texas Windstorm Insurer Sued for Passing on Ike Costs to Policyholders
Apr 2 2014 // A Corpus Christi man is suing the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association for hundreds of millions of dollars because he says it improperly passed on costs to policyholders like him after Hurricane Ike in 2008. Ramiro Gamboa...
Final Report on Joplin Tornado Highlights Communication, Building Standards
Apr 2 2014 // A federal agency’s final report about its technical investigation into the 2011 Joplin tornado calls for nationally accepted standards for building design and construction, and public shelters and emergency...
Tornado in Western Minnesota Damages Farms
Apr 2 2014 // A tornado has damaged at least three farms in rural Minnesota, but no injuries are reported. Yellow Medicine County Sheriff Bill Flaten said in a statement the tornado was reported about 4 p.m. on March 31 southeast of St....
Insurer Group Opposes Lower Named Storm Maximum Deductible in Louisiana
Apr 2 2014 // A proposal in the Louisiana Legislature to reduce the maximum deductible on named storms and require winds in excess of 125 miles per hour before the deductible could be applied would likely result in higher insurance...
Oklahoma Bills Would Limit Liability of Shelters During Storms
Mar 31 2014 // A pair of Oklahoma legislators says businesses, schools and churches that open their doors to passers-by during violent weather should be spared liability if their temporary guests are hurt or killed. A bill by Rep. Larry...
Proposal Envisions Artificial Islands Near N.Y. to Blunt Future Storm Surges
Mar 31 2014 // A string of artificial islands off the coast of New Jersey and New York could blunt the impact of storm surges that proved so deadly during Superstorm Sandy, according to a new proposal. It’s a big proposal —...
Northern California Sees Tornadoes Touch Down
Mar 28 2014 // Several tornadoes touched down during storms in Northern California, including one twister near Sacramento that damaged a dozen homes and left a path of debris about 300 yards long. The National Weather Service says a...
PERILS Latest Loss Estimates: Windstorm Tini $338 Million; Dirk $486 Million
Mar 26 2014 // PERILS, the independent Zurich-based organization providing industry-wide catastrophe insurance data, announced that its initial loss estimate for Windstorm Tini, also known as Darwin, which affected Ireland and the United...
Connecticut AG Closes Investigation Into Utility’s Storm Response
Mar 21 2014 // Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen has closed his investigation into how the state’s largest utility responded to a freak October snow storm in 2011 that knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of...
Protesters Criticize N.J. Gov. Over Storm Aid, Scandal at Town Hall
Mar 20 2014 // At least a dozen protesters disrupted a town hall meeting Tuesday with New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, criticizing him over the distribution of Superstorm Sandy recovery aid and a for political payback scandal...
Haigood Appointed to Texas Windstorm Insurance Association Board
Mar 20 2014 // Texas Commissioner of Insurance Julia Rathgeber appointed Lyndell Haigood to serve on the board of directors of the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) for a term to expire in March 2015. The board oversees all...
Tornado-Devastated Oklahoma Town Adopts New Residential Building Codes
Mar 19 2014 // City leaders in Moore, Okla., have approved new residential building codes requiring new homes to be built to withstand winds of up to 135 mph, making it the first U.S. city to adopt construction rules aimed at preventing...
Virginia Police Responded to More Than 350 Wrecks After Latest Winter Storm
Mar 19 2014 // Virginia State Police say troopers have responded to more than 350 wrecks since a winter storm hit the state. State police spokeswoman Corinne Geller says troopers also responded to 228 disabled vehicles between 12:01 a.m....
Indiana City Urging Property Owners to Cleanup Tornado Damage
Mar 16 2014 // Owners of structures damaged by tornadoes that hit Kokomo, Ind., in November are being urged to start removing the debris or begin rebuilding. The city’s code enforcement section has begun sending letters to owners...
Weather Service in Oklahoma Runs Social Media ‘Tornado Drill’
Mar 13 2014 // Melody Holeman has no TV and lives in such a rural part of the Oklahoma Panhandle that she can’t even pick up a signal on the weather radio that the Red Cross gave her. When powerful storms barrel through the area,...
Oklahoma Kids Get Helmets for Tornado Protection
Mar 10 2014 // As many as 34,000 students and workers in the Moore school district in Oklahoma soon will have access to helmets to protect them during severe weather. Moore Helmets for Schools, a group of volunteers headed by the mother...
