Latest Catastrophe Headlines

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

Europe’s $42 Billion Effort to Fight Wildfires Is an Uphill Battle

Aug 19 2024 // Europe is spending tens of billions of euros a year to fight wildfires, yet it hasn’t stopped blazes from flaring up across Greece and other parts of the continent this summer.This week fires on the outskirts of...

The Huge Profits Investors Have Made on Catastrophe Bonds Are Raising Eyebrows

Aug 19 2024 // A strategy that’s delivered specialist investors huge returns is now facing scrutiny, amid concerns that its risk-reward dynamics might be skewed against some issuers.Catastrophe bonds, which are issued by insurers,...

Wildfires Are Growing Under Climate Change, and Their Smoke Threatens Farmworkers

Aug 16 2024 // As wildfires scorched swaths of land in the wine country of Sonoma County in 2020, sending ash flying and choking the air with smoke, Maria Salinas harvested grapes.Her saliva turned black from inhaling the toxins, until...

Wildfire Near Athens Burns Area Nearly Twice the Size of Manhattan

Aug 16 2024 // A European Union satellite mapping agency says 104 square kilometers (40 square miles) of land was burned northeast of Athens this week during a deadly wildfire that gutted scores of homes and prompted multiple countries...

Ernesto Becomes Category 2 Hurricane as It Heads to Bermuda

Aug 16 2024 // Ernesto strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane as it plowed northward toward Bermuda, threatening to drench the British territory with heavy rain and unleash flash floods.The storm was 410 miles (660 kilometers)...

Hundreds Able to Return Home After Fleeing Wildfire Along California-Nevada Line

Aug 15 2024 // Hundreds of people were allowed to return home this week after being forced to flee a wildfire west of Reno that also shut down Interstate 80 along the California-Nevada line.About 170 firefighters continued to work to...

Judge Bars Insurers From Going After Defendants Who Agreed to $4B Maui Wildfire Settlement

Aug 15 2024 // A Maui judge’s ruling resolves a critical roadblock to finalizing a $4 billion wildfire settlement: Insurance companies who have paid out more than $2 billion in claims can seek reimbursement only from the settlement...

Update: Severe Typhoon Skims Japan, Disrupting Flight, Train Services

Aug 15 2024 // Typhoon Ampil grazed Japan’s main island of Honshu on Friday, prompting cancellations of flights and trains in the middle of the country’s peak summer holiday season.Japan Airlines Co. and All Nippon Airways...

Hurricane Ernesto Threatens Bermuda, Leaves Puerto Rico in Dark

Aug 15 2024 // Hurricane Ernesto took aim at Bermuda as almost half of Puerto Rico remained without power in the storm’s wake, the island’s fragile electric grid battered by high winds.Officials declared a hurricane watch for...

Catastrophe Bond Issuance Is Set to Blast Through 2023 Record

Aug 15 2024 // Issuance of catastrophe bonds is on track to exceed the record set in 2023, as a cocktail of climate change, population density and inflation feeds growth in a market built around natural disasters.A fresh analysis by...

Report: 2.6M Homes with a Cost of $1.3 Trillion at Moderate to Very High Risk of Wildfire

Aug 15 2024 // More than 2.6 million homes across 14 states with a total reconstruction cost of $1.3 trillion are at moderate to very high risk of wildfire damage during the 2024 wildfire season, a new report shows.The 2024 CoreLogic...

Tornado Havoc Has Ohio Residents Facing Week-Long Power Cuts

Aug 14 2024 // Thousands of FirstEnergy Corp.’s customers in Ohio will potentially be without power through this after two tornadoes hit the northeastern part of the state last Tuesday.About 252,000 customers of The Illuminating...

Tropical Storm Ernesto Drenches Puerto Rico on Path Northward

Aug 14 2024 // Tropical Storm Ernesto pounded Puerto Rico with torrential rain and winds as it brushed by the island on a track that’s likely to see it become a hurricane later Wednesday.Ernesto was about 85 miles (135 kilometers)...

Record-Breaking Wildfires Scorched 1.4M Acres in Oregon, Authorities Say

Aug 14 2024 // Wildfires in Oregon have burned more acres of land in 2024 than in any year since reliable records began, authorities said, with the mid-August peak of fire season still on the horizon.Blazes have scorched more than 1.4...

M4.4 Earthquake Near Pasadena Felt out to California’s High Desert

Aug 13 2024 // The U.S. Geological Survey confirmed that a magnitude 4.4 earthquake struck an area southeast of of Highland Park, California on Monday.The quake was 7.4 miles deep and struck at 12:20 p.m. PST, according to the USGS....

Athens Braces for Wildfire Flare-Ups as High Winds Return

Aug 13 2024 // Greek firefighters are working to bring the remnants of a huge wildfire near Athens under control, after wind speeds picked up again on Tuesday afternoon.The biggest blaze of the summer started northeast of the capital...

Report: 10 of Top U.S. Metros at Moderate to Very High Risk of Wildfire Are in California

Aug 13 2024 // Ten of the top 15 metropolitan areas for wildfire risk concentration are in California, while more than 2.6 million homes across 14 states with a total reconstruction cost of $1.3 trillion are at moderate to very high risk...

Colorado Wildfire That Destroyed 27 Homes Was Human-Caused, Officials Say

Aug 12 2024 // The Colorado wildfire that tore through 15 square miles (39 square kilometers) and destroyed 48 buildings, over half of which were homes, was human-caused, investigators said.The Alexander Mountain Fire burning near...

Australian Pensions Industry Boosts Investments in Natural Catastrophe Reinsurance

Aug 12 2024 // The risks from the growing number of natural disasters offer Australia’s largest pension funds a chance to boost returns.Colonial First State, one of the nation’s biggest pension and wealth managers, is looking...

Gallagher Re: Insured Losses From Hurricane Debby to Be ‘Very Manageable’

Aug 12 2024 // Insurers and reinsurers’ losses from Hurricane Debby are expected to be in the low single-digit billions of dollars, a figure that would be “very manageable” for the industry, according to a report from...