Latest Hurricane Headlines

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

Evacuations Ordered on North Carolina Outer Banks for Hurricane Maria

Sep 26 2017 // An evacuation was underway Tuesday on an island on North Carolina’s Outer Banks as Hurricane Maria moved north. The Hyde County Sheriff’s office said the evacuation began at 5 a.m. Monday on Ocracoke Island. It...

Insured Losses in Caribbean from Hurricane Maria Estimated at $40B-$85B: AIR

Sep 26 2017 // Industry insured losses for Hurricane Maria in the Caribbean will be between US$40 billion and US$85 billion, according to catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide. Puerto Rico alone accounts for more than 85 percent of the...

Storm Watch Issued for North Carolina as Puerto Rico, Markets Weigh Maria’s Economic Costs

Sep 24 2017 // Storm watches have been issued for North Carolina as the U.S. is threatened by a hurricane for the fourth time in a month. Tropical storm watches, meaning winds of at least 39 miles (63 kilometers) per hour could reach the...

How Home Values Track with High, Low Risk of Natural Hazards: ATTOM Data

Sep 22 2017 // Americans are still buying homes in areas with high risk of natural hazards and the homes in those cities continue to appreciate in value far faster than homes in low natural hazard locales. However, the effect on home...

Jump in Energy Contract Lawsuits Expected in Harvey’s Wake

Sep 22 2017 // Lawyers expect a spate of force majeure contract lawsuits after Hurricane Harvey tore through Southeast Texas and parts of Louisiana last month, paralyzing a fifth of U.S. fuel output and pushing some oil production...

Natural Disasters Begin to Hit Profits of Global Reinsurers

Sep 22 2017 // A profit warning from one of the world’s largest reinsurers is the latest sign that the death and destruction from a spate of hurricanes and earthquakes in North America are now taking a toll on the titans of global...

Power Restored For All But 75K Florida Residents, But Utilities Face Criticism

Sep 22 2017 // After a massive restoration effort, most of Florida has power 10 days after Hurricane Irma knocked out electricity to nearly two-thirds of the state, mostly because of improvements made to the power grid since Hurricane...

Insurance Industry Tallies Irma’s Mounting Losses in Florida

Sep 22 2017 // With two Florida landfalls in the same day, Hurricane Irma‘s destructive wind and flood damage could cost up to $65 billion for both insured and uninsured losses, according to a recent estimate by...

Texans Helping Texans: Independent MGAs Join Forces for Targeted Harvey Relief

Sep 21 2017 // A group of independently owned Texas managing general agents (MGAs) have come together to provide targeted, direct, local relief to communities affected by Hurricane Harvey. Texas MGAs for Disaster Relief is working with...

Insurance Industry Foundation Opens Charity Fund for Hurricane Irma Victims

Sep 21 2017 // The Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF), a nonprofit organization for insurance industry charitable giving, has launched a new disaster relief fund to assist the millions affected by the catastrophic damage of...

East Coast Watching Effect of ‘Zombie’ Storm Jose on Maria’s Path

Sep 21 2017 // Hurricane Maria continued its thunderous roll northward as forecasters struggled to pin down a trajectory. Whether the storm makes landfall again could be determined by a zombie. That’s what former Hurricane Jose...

States Need Better Protections for Insurance Consumers in Natural Disasters: Rutgers Report

Sep 21 2017 // As homeowners continue to file insurance claims in the wake of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, a research report released by the Rutgers Center for Risk and Responsibility at the Rutgers Law School in Camden, N.J., suggests...

Fitch: Hurricane Irma Losses Substantial, But Won’t Weaken Insurer Ratings

Sep 21 2017 // Estimated insured losses for the insurance industry for Hurricane Irma range from $25 to $50 billion based on various loss estimates, according to a report from Fitch Ratings. The ratings agency said these losses will...

Hurricane Maria Carves Path of Destruction Through Puerto Rico

Sep 20 2017 // Hurricane Maria, the strongest storm to strike Puerto Rico in nearly 90 years, carved a path of destruction through the U.S. territory on Wednesday, causing widespread flooding and knocking power out across the island...

After the Storm: Insurance Agents E&O Lessons Learned

Sep 20 2017 // Editor’s Note: This is a republication of a January, 2013 article by Sally Coombs, who was then with Fireman’s Fund Insurance Co, which is now integrated into Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty...

FEMA Not Relying on Trailers to House Hurricane Victims

Sep 20 2017 // The hurricanes that battered Texas and Florida have likely spawned the worst disaster-created housing crisis since Hurricane Katrina left hundreds of thousands of Gulf Coast residents without homes more than a decade...

A.M. Best Warns on Hurricane Maria Impact on Caribbean/Puerto Rican Insurers

Sep 20 2017 // Many insurers and reinsurers in the Caribbean and in Puerto Rico will be tested as they brace for Hurricane Maria, the second hurricane to hit the region in two weeks, according to ratings agency A.M. Best. Hurricane Maria...

New York State Prepares Long Island for Hurricane Jose’s Impact

Sep 20 2017 // New York state officials have deployed members of the National Guard and specialized emergency response units to Long Island to prepare for potentially severe weather caused by Hurricane Jose. Gov. Andrew Cuomo says 100...

Most Produce Farmers Hit by Recent Hurricanes Not Covered by Federal Crop Insurance

Sep 20 2017 // In the U.S, government-backed insurance plans help compensate farmers for losses after natural disasters. Unfortunately for the produce growers that were ravaged by recent hurricanes, a lot of the nation’s vegetable...

Category 4 Hurricane Maria Barrels Into Puerto Rico

Sep 20 2017 // Hurricane Maria slammed into southeastern Puerto Rico as a Category 4 storm with the potential to inflict $30 billion in damages just two weeks after Irma ravaged the cash-strapped island. Top winds reached 155 miles (249...