Latest Catastrophe Headlines

All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Thwarted Plot to Attack Baltimore Power Grid Part of Growing Domestic Terrorism: Feds

Feb 8 2023 // A Maryland woman spent months conspiring with a neo-Nazi leader based in Florida to plan an attack on Baltimore’s power grid, hoping to further their racist mission, law enforcement officials said Monday.The plan was...

No Damage or Injuries Reported From Small Earthquake in Buffalo Suburb

Feb 7 2023 // A small earthquake rumbled through western New York early Monday, alarming people in a region unaccustomed to such shaking but apparently causing no significant damage.The U.S. Geological Survey preliminarily reported a...

Update: Powerful Earthquakes Hit Turkey and Syria With at Least 4,000 Killed

Feb 6 2023 // Rescue teams from overseas began deploying in Turkey on Tuesday after a pair of powerful earthquakes a day earlier killed at least 4,000 people in the country and neighboring Syria, leaving millions to suffer without power...

$930M to Curb Western U.S. Wildfires Crisis

Feb 6 2023 // The U.S. is directing $930 million toward reducing wildfire dangers in 10 western states by clearing trees and underbrush from national forests, the Biden administration announced in late January, as officials struggle to...

Kentucky Tornado Relief Payments Come Under Scrutiny

Feb 3 2023 // Some people unaffected by tornadoes that ravaged Kentucky in late 2021 were mistakenly sent payments from a relief fund funneling private donations into the region, the state treasurer’s office said Wednesday.State...

California Earthquake False Alarm Offers a Lesson for Crisis Communicators

Jan 31 2023 // An earthquake false alarm nearly four years ago can teach disaster and emergency planners – and any crisis communicators, including insurers – a thing or two about communicating to the public during and after a...

Filipino Workers Say Oil Company Abandoned Them in Hurricane Ida

Jan 30 2023 // NEW ORLEANS (AP) – As Hurricane Ida struck the Louisiana Gulf Coast in August 2021, Renato Decena and Rosel Hernandez watched the storm punch a hole in the roof of the bunkhouse where they were sheltered _ abandoned,...

Light Earthquake Confirmed in Southern California

Jan 26 2023 // A light earthquake centered offshore gave Southern California an early morning wake-up call Wednesday, the U.S. Geological Survey confirmed.There were no reports of damage. The 2 a.m. quake occurred beneath the ocean 10.6...

Tornado Causes Damage East of Houston

Jan 26 2023 // PASADENA, Texas (AP) – A powerful storm system took aim at the Gulf Coast on Tuesday, spawning a tornado that downed utility poles and power lines, overturned vehicles and ripped roofs off homes and businesses in...

Attorney for La. Insurer Says Firm Working with Contractors to Find New Hurricane Claimants

Jan 25 2023 // An insurance defense attorney accuses the McClenny Moseley & Associates law firm of teaming up with restoration contractors to illegally acquire clients, which sometimes resulted in duplicate lawsuits being filed...

Entergy Louisiana Customers to Cover $1.5B for Hurricane Ida Repairs

Jan 23 2023 // METAIRIE, La. (AP) – About a million customers of an electric utility in Louisiana will cover more than $1.4 billion in repair costs related to Hurricane Ida.Entergy Louisiana said residential customers will see about...

$930M to Curb Western U.S. Wildfires Crisis

Jan 23 2023 // The U.S. is directing $930 million toward reducing wildfire dangers in 10 western states by clearing trees and underbrush from national forests, the Biden administration announced Thursday, as officials struggle to contain...

January Renewals See Hardest Property-Catastrophe Reinsurance Rates in a Generation

Jan 23 2023 // A convergence of global events has led to the hardest property catastrophe reinsurance market in a generation and a “complex,” “grueling” and “late” January renewal season, which went...

Insurers Agree to Extend ALE Coverage for Colorado Wildfire Survivors

Jan 19 2023 // Insurers agreed to a request from the Colorado Division of Insurance to extend additional living expenses coverage for Marshall Fire survivors.Homeowners’ insurance companies have agreed to extend coverage for up to...

Disaster Assistance Funds Available for Georgia Housing and Repairs After Tornadoes

Jan 19 2023 // The Federal Emergency Management Agency says that disaster assistance has been made available to Georgia in areas struck by a tornado outbreak across the South on Thursday.In an announcement Tuesday, FEMA said that...

AM Best Downgrades California Earthquake Authority Credit Ratings

Jan 18 2023 // AM Best downgraded the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) to B++ (Good) from A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) to “bbb+” (Good) from “a-” (Excellent) of California...

Insurance 101: Understanding Catastrophe Bonds (CAT Bonds)

Jan 18 2023 // This post is part of a series sponsored by AgentSync. Since the mid ’90s, insurers have used catastrophe bonds (CAT bonds) to provide a financial safety net in response to cataclysmic events like hundred-year floods,...

Alabama Survivors Hid in Tubs, Shipping Containers as Tornado Tore Through Homes

Jan 17 2023 // An Alabama engine mechanic took refuge in a shipping container as a tornado decimated his shop and killed two of his neighbors along its destructive path across Alabama and Georgia.The harrowing stories of David Hollon and...

7 Deaths, Severe Damage in Alabama as Tornadoes Rip Across the Southeast

Jan 13 2023 // At least seven people were killed in central Alabama and more are missing after tornadoes and severe storms left a swath of damage across parts of the South.Local news reports said that a large tornado ripped through...

New Mexico Delegation Seeks Changes to Wildfire Aid Rules

Jan 11 2023 // New Mexico’s congressional delegation says the U.S. government should make changes to rules proposed for processing damage claims stemming from a historic wildfire sparked by forest managers.The delegation sent a...