Latest Natural Disasters Headlines

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

California Commissioner Issues Another Non-Renewal Moratorium to Aid Policyholders Affected by Wildfires

Sep 1 2021 // California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara has issued notices to insurers alerting them to cease non-renewals and cancellations of insurance coverage for communities with wildfire emergencies. Lara’s notices...

Bears Emerge as Threat in Fight Against Minnesota Wildfire

Sep 1 2021 // Officials leading the fight against wildfires in northeastern Minnesota warned Aug. 30 about a new threat: bears attracted by generous donations of food and other supplies. “Donations have far out-stripped our need...

Confirmed Tornado Caused Damage in Southeastern South Dakota

Aug 31 2021 // A storm survey team from the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, has confirmed it was a tornado that caused damage in and around Lennox during the weekend. The weather service tweeted the brief tornado...

Floods, Outages Stall Oil Companies’ Efforts to Restart After Hurricane Ida

Aug 31 2021 // Widespread flooding from Hurricane Ida and power outages slowed efforts on Tuesday by energy firms to assess damages at oil production facilities, ports and refineries. Nearly all of Louisiana lost electrical power on...

Higher Rebuilding Prices Expected to Boost Hurricane Ida’s Insurance Costs

Aug 31 2021 // Insurers are bracing for $15 billion to $30 billion in claims from Hurricane Ida, but the figure could jump higher, in part because of pandemic pricing that has pushed up the cost of lumber and labor to rebuild, insurance...

Northeastern Iowa Tornado, Storms Damage Buildings, Crops

Aug 30 2021 // Officials in northeastern Iowa say a tornado caused significant damage, especially in the small town of Marble Rock. KCRG-TV reports that emergency management officials cited power lines and trees knocked over after a...

CoreLogic: Hurricane Ida Threatens 941K Homes with $220B in Rebuilding Cost

Aug 29 2021 // Severe wind, surge inundation and extended heavy rainfall endanger more than 941,000 homes with a reconstruction cost value of all at-risk homes totaling more than $220 billion, catastrophe modeling firm CoreLogic reported...

Explainer: Is Hawaii’s Kilauea Volcano Going to Erupt Again?

Aug 27 2021 // The ground at the summit of Kilauea volcano in Hawaii has been rumbling and swelling in recent days, prompting scientists to warn that the mountain could once again disgorge lava. But there’s no indication an...

California Wildfire Threatens Lake Tahoe Area

Aug 27 2021 // Some 14,000 firefighters facing changing weather conditions battled more than a dozen large wildfires across California, including a growing blaze that was slowly pushing toward the Lake Tahoe resort region. Winds and...

Scientists Detected Earthquake Swarm at Hawaii Volcano

Aug 26 2021 // Geologists said they had detected a swarm of earthquakes at Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano, though it is not erupting. The quakes began overnight on Tuesday and continued into the morning, The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory...

KCC Estimates Insured Loss From Hurricane Grace: $300M in Mexico, $30M in Caribbean

Aug 26 2021 // Catastrophe modeling firm the Karen Clark & Company (KCC) estimates that the insured loss to onshore properties from Hurricane Grace will be around $330 million—$300 million in Mexico and $30 million in the...

$40M in Hurricane Laura Repairs at Louisiana College

Aug 25 2021 // A southwest Louisiana community college says it has nearly completed more than $40 million in repairs and rebuilding needed because of damage from last year’s Hurricane Laura. The need for skilled workers to repair...

Firefighter Dies While Working Oregon Wildfire, Officials Say

Aug 25 2021 // A firefighter died this week while battling a wildfire southeast of Eugene, Oregon, officials said. Bryan Cutchen, Oakridge city administrator and acting fire chief, said the death is suspected to have been caused by a...

Texas Coastal Windstorm Insurance Coalition Celebrates 50 Years

Aug 24 2021 // The Coastal Windstorm Insurance Coalition in Texas is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Established originally as the Windstorm Action Committee in Galveston, the coalition has expanded in recent years to include...

M4 Earthquake Confirmed in Southeastern California

Aug 24 2021 // An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 4.0 shook an agricultural area of southeastern California early Monday, the U.S. Geological Survey confirmed. The quake struck at 7:57 a.m. south of the Salton Sea, about 7...

Mulch Eyed as Erosion Control Following Colorado Wildfires

Aug 24 2021 // An aerial landscaping team has taken flight in the mountains west of Fort Collins, Colo. Its landing site sits in a broad field at the base of Poudre Canyon. Every few minutes, a helicopter arrives to lift a net loaded...

New Wildfires Break Out on Greece’s Evia Island

Aug 24 2021 // ATHENS, Greece (AP) – Greece’s fire department scrambled firefighting aircraft and ground forces as at least two new blazes broke out in areas already scarred by wildfires this summer, with strong winds...

Hurricane Laura Hit Louisiana a Year Ago but Recovery Is Ongoing

Aug 24 2021 // Hurricane Laura made landfall in Southwest Louisiana nearly a year ago but local officials and state insurance regulators say the area still a long way to go to recover. Laura, which made landfall on August 27, 2020,...

Greece Wildfire Destroys Jobs of Pine Resin Collectors

Aug 23 2021 // AGDINES, Greece (AP) – For generations, residents in the north of the Greek island of Evia have made their living from the dense pine forests surrounding their villages. Tapping the ubiquitous Aleppo pines for their...

Hurricane Grace Crosses Mexico, Killing at Least 8 People

Aug 23 2021 // Hurricane Grace crossed through Mexico on Saturday, leaving at least eight people dead, causing floods and power cuts to more than half a million customers, before losing force as it swept toward the country’s...