Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Hedge Fund Fermat Has Best Year Ever as Catastrophe Bonds Deliver Record Results
Jan 18 2024 // Fermat Capital Management just had the best year in its more than two-decade history, after outsize bets on catastrophe bonds delivered record results. The hedge fund’s returns were “in line” with the 20%...
Wildfire Prevention, Helping Maui Recover Top Agenda for Hawaii Lawmakers
Jan 16 2024 // Hawaii lawmakers convened this week for the first time since the burning of historic Lahaina awakened the state to the deadly and costly threat posed by wildfires in an age of climate change. The tragedy refocused the...
A Catastrophe of a Catastrophe Bill
Jan 16 2024 // On January 12, Representative Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) introduced a bill, the “Incorporating National Support for Unprecedented Risks and Emergencies (INSURE) Act.” The stated goal of the bill is to...
Federal Reinsurance Backstop for Catastrophes: APCIA Says No Thanks
Jan 16 2024 // Federal lawmakers introduced a bill to create a federal natural catastrophe backstop recently, reacting to insurers’ issues with growing private reinsurance costs. But a trade group for carriers suggested that a...
Australia’s Usual Summer of Wildfires Is Now Being Soaked by Prolonged Wet Weather
Jan 12 2024 // Australians bracing for a return of scorching heat and wildfires are instead battling a prolonged deluge of rain across the country’s east that’s inundated homes and damaged crops from sugar to wheat. Vast...
Texas Regulators Suspend Well Permits to Address Rising Earthquake Frequency
Jan 11 2024 // The state’s oil and gas regulatory agency last month suspended nearly two dozen permits that let companies inject saltwater water into the ground, a routine industry practice that regulators said has contributed to...
Tornadoes Rip Homes, Businesses in Florida Panhandle
Jan 9 2024 // Multiple tornadoes and high winds were reported across the South early Tuesday, including Panama City, Florida, where storms caused significant damage to homes and businesses and forced rescues of stranded...
Houston Yet to Allocate $200 Million in Federal Relief Funds to Hurricane Harvey Victims
Jan 8 2024 // More than six years after Hurricane Harvey flooded thousands of homes and killed more than 80 people on the Texas Coast, the city of Houston has yet to allocate $200 million in federal relief funds to victims, according to...
Lawsuit Says Compensation Delayed for Victims of Worst Wildfire in New Mexico History
Jan 8 2024 // A new lawsuit has been filed against the Federal Emergency Management Agency, alleging compensation has been delayed for victims of the largest wildfire in New Mexico’s recorded history. FEMA is responsible for...
Markets/Coverages: Lloyd’s Announces 1st 144A Cat Bond on Its London Bridge Platform
Jan 8 2024 // Lloyd’s, the re/insurance marketplace, announced that the first 144A catastrophe bond has been issued on its risk transformation platform London Bridge 2 PCC Ltd. Beazley is the sponsor of the US$100 million...
Inigo Issues 3rd Catastrophe Bond for $100 Million
Jan 5 2024 // Inigo Ltd. announced it has issued its third catastrophe bond for $100 million via Montoya Re Ltd. The cat bond will cover North American named storms and earthquakes and will use a PCS industry loss index trigger. The...
The Sentry Tees Off PGA Tour as First Major Sporting Event in Maui Since Wildfires
Jan 5 2024 // The 2024 PGA Tour teed off Thursday with the opening round of The Sentry, the first major sporting event to be held on the island of Maui since the devastating Lahaina wildfires in August. Sentry Insurance, the...
Japan Earthquake Casts Cloud Over Push to Restart Nuclear Plants
Jan 5 2024 // The powerful earthquake that hit Japan’s western coast on New Year’s Day has underscored the country’s exposure to natural disasters, casting fresh doubt over a push to bring its nuclear capacity back...
Small Earthquake Shakes Maryland Suburbs
Jan 4 2024 // A small earthquake shook the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C., early Tuesday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The quake with a preliminary magnitude of 2.3 happened around 12:51 a.m. It was centered nearly 2...
Maui Needs Tourists. Can They Visit Without Compounding Wildfire Trauma?
Jan 3 2024 // The restaurant where Katie Austin was a server burned in the wildfire that devastated Hawaii`s historic town of Lahaina this summer. Two months later, as travelers began to trickle back to nearby beach resorts, she went to...
Turkey Earthquake Tops 2023 Insurance Industry Losses Outside US: CRESTA
Jan 2 2024 // The largest non-US natural catastrophe in 2023 was the Kahramanmaras Earthquake Sequence in Turkey on Feb. 6, which generated an industry loss of US$5.8 billion, the largest ever cat loss for the Turkish insurance market,...
2024 Oregon Consumer Laws Include Protections for Homeowners Dealing with Wildfire
Dec 29 2023 // Consumer protections for homeowners dealing with wildfire-related issues, property contents coverage, personal data protection and prescription drugs are set to go into effect in 2024. The Oregon Division of Financial...
Hawaii Fire Shows Wildfires Pose Particular Threat to Elderly and Other Vulnerable Individuals
Dec 28 2023 // Sharlene Rabang and her calico cat fled the wildfire that destroyed her town on Maui and arrived at a family home on another Hawaii island after a 24-hour odyssey that included sleeping in a car. Dazed, coughing and weak,...
7th Person in Tennessee Dies from Tornado
Dec 22 2023 // NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A seventh person in Tennessee has died from injuries she suffered during a string of powerful storms earlier this month that whipped up destructive tornadoes, according to police. Penny...
China Earthquake Update: 137 People Killed, 12 Still Missing, 207,000 Homes Wrecked
Dec 21 2023 // A dozen people were still missing on Thursday after a 6.2-magnitude earthquake struck northwestern Gansu province late Monday, and netizens questioned the speed at which rescue operations had ended. Chinese media reported...
