Latest Hurricane Headlines
All the headlines from our Hurricane Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Underwritiers weigh design, construction of offshore oil platforms
Apr 9 2007 // Not all offshore platforms are created equal, which is why one platform will survive a storm unscathed while another nearby is completely obliterated. In order to appropriately underwrite offshore platform risk,...
Not All Gulf Coast Residents Put Stock in Latest Hurricane Forecast
Apr 5 2007 // A hurricane forecaster this week predicted a turbulent season this year, including a good chance one will hit the coast, but forgive South Carolina’s Huiet Paul if he was unimpressed. “Only the good Lord knows...
Forecasters Warn of Very Active Hurricane Season Ahead in 2007
Apr 3 2007 // Atmospheric science experts at Colorado State University have increased their forecast for the 2007 hurricane season, largely due to the rapid dissipation of El Niño conditions. The Colorado team is now calling for a very...
Mitigation Grants Showing up in Florida Mailboxes
Apr 2 2007 // The My Safe Florida Home program mailed 10 mitigation grants totaling almost $30,000 to Florida homeowners from five counties who hardened their homes against hurricanes per the program stipulations, according to...
RMS Defends ‘Near Term’ Hurricane Model, Denies Collusion
Mar 30 2007 // In the wake of a flurry of critical comments made by consumer activist groups aimed at the methodology Risk Management Solutions employed to establish “near term” hurricane models, RMS’s public policy...
Firm Releases Study of Possible La. ‘Catastrophe Fund’
Mar 30 2007 // A private firm has released its study of how Louisiana would operate a “catastrophe fund,” one of several ideas lawmakers are considering to help ease the state’s property insurance crisis. The study...
Fla. Considers Storm Supply Tax Break, New Claims Law Glitch
Mar 30 2007 // Flashlights, radios, tarps and other hurricane supplies would be tax free for 12 days at the beginning of hurricane season, under a measure the Florida House has under consideration. Floridians received a similar tax break...
‘Near Term’ Hurricane Models Used by Insurers Under Fire
Mar 29 2007 // Recent “near term” hurricane prediction models based on five-year forecasts are being skewered by consumer groups urging state regulators to reject them as a basis for hiking coastal property insurance...
Let Private Markets Handle Most Disasters, Insurers Advise Congress
Mar 28 2007 // The best way for the federal government to help property owners recover from a natural disaster is to let private insurers do what they know, except in the case of a megadisaster, when federal aid would be needed. That was...
Insurers Reject Critics Who Say Big Profits Are at Claimants’ Expense
Mar 28 2007 // The headline numbers were eye-popping: Allstate reported a record $5 billion profit for 2006. State Farm Insurance’s profit climbed 65 percent for the year. St. Paul Travelers’ earnings rose sixfold in the...
First Responders, Businesses Tell Congress U.S. Needs Disaster Plan
Mar 27 2007 // A coalition of first responders, emergency management experts, businesses and insurers told Congress that America needs a comprehensive public-private, federal-state partnership to protect against a massive hurricane or...
Washington warming to national disaster plan idea
Mar 26 2007 // Sen. Dodd says hurricane and flood disasters are not just a local issue, but a national one A proposal for a national disaster plan to backup private hurricane and flood insurance markets appears to be gaining momentum in...
Associated Industries of Fla. Cautions Against Citizens’ Expansion
Mar 26 2007 // Associated Industries of Florida is urging the state’s insurance officials and budget leaders to proceed with caution as they work toward the overhauling of Citizens Property Insurance Corp. Citizens plans to expand...
News Currents
Mar 26 2007 // Washington warming to national disaster plan idea Sen. Dodd says hurricane and flood disasters are not just a local issue, but a national one A proposal for a national disaster plan to backup private hurricane and flood...
La. Report Blames Corps of Engineers for New Orleans Levee Breaks
Mar 23 2007 // Decades of mistakes – some as basic as not knowing the elevation of New Orleans – led the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to believe its levees and floodwalls would protect the city from a storm as strong as...
TSR Updates Hurricane Forecast
Mar 21 2007 // The UK-based Tropical Storm Risk (TSR) weather forecaster has issued a revised assessment of the upcoming Atlantic hurricane season, which indicates that it will be a more active season than previously expected. TSR, which...
Hurricane Chief Voices Concerns About Forecasts from Aging Satellite
Mar 19 2007 // Certain hurricane forecasts could become less accurate if a key weather satellite that is already beyond its expected life span fails, the nation’s new top forecaster said. The change would mean placing longer...
Washington Warming to National Disaster Plan Idea
Mar 16 2007 // A proposal for a national disaster plan to backup private hurricane and flood insurance markets appears to be gaining momentum in Washington. This week, Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., chairman of the House Financial Services...
EPA Allows Demolition of 1,200 Hurricane-Damaged Homes in Miss.
Mar 15 2007 // About 1,200 hurricane-damaged homes in south Mississippi can be torn down under rules that have been extended by the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA’s No Action Assurance program runs until Sept. 30 for...
La.’s Citizens Agrees to Mass Settlement of Hurricane Suits
Mar 12 2007 // Louisiana’s state-run insurer has agreed to a mass settlement with more than 100 policyholders, a deal believed to be the first of its kind in the state since hurricanes Katrina and Rita spawned thousands of...