2021 natural catastrophes News

First Half Insured Losses From Natural Disasters Reach 10-Year High

Insured losses from natural disasters hit a 10-year high of $42 billion in the first half of 2021, with the biggest loss related to extreme cold in the United States in February, insurance broker Aon said on Wednesday. Overall economic …

Update: China Province Deluged by 1,000-Year Flood, with Rising Death Toll

BEIJING – At least least 25 people have died in China’s flood-stricken central province of Henan, a dozen of them in a subway line in its capital Zhengzhou, and more rains are forecast for the region. About 100,000 people have …

German Floods Will Be Expensive but Unlikely to Burn Through Insurers’ Earnings: Fitch

The recent severe floods in Germany could add up to 5 percentage points to German non-life insurers’ net combined ratios (net claims and expenses to net premiums), according to Fitch Ratings. The insured losses are likely to be Germany’s highest …

Death Toll from European Floods Rises Above 180

The death toll from flooding in Western Europe climbed above 180 on Sunday after rescue workers dug deeper into debris left by receding waters. Police put the toll from the hard-hit Ahrweiler area of western Germany’s Rhineland-Palatinate state at more …

Germany Reels from Flood ‘Catastrophe’; Insurers Expect Costly Claims for 2021

Chancellor Angela Merkel pledged swift help backed by “all the power of the state” for people affected by devastating flooding in western Germany, where at least 42 people have died and dozens are missing. Following heavy rain Wednesday night into …

Storms Cause Heavy Flooding Across Parts of Western and Central Europe

Storms caused heavy flooding across parts of western and central Europe overnight, with one man missing after being swept away by a raging stream in eastern Germany. Firefighters resumed their search for the man in Joehstadt, in Saxony state, on …

Canada Orders Rail Transport Restrictions in Areas with High Wildfire Risk

OTTAWA – Canada on Sunday ordered rail transport restrictions for areas where there is a high wildfire risk after a blaze wiped out the town of Lytton, British Columbia, and killed two people earlier this month. The order will require …

Europe, U.S. and Canada Slammed by Record Weather Catastrophes in June: Aon

June 2021 left Europe with its costliest severe storm period on record. Meanwhile, over in the U.S. in Canada, record-setting heatwaves caused significant damage, according to Aon’s latest natural catastrophe report. Aon said Europe will face insured losses of more …

Insured Losses for March’s New South Wales, Queensland Floods Estimated at A$916M

PERILS, the independent Zurich-based organization that provides industry-wide catastrophe insurance data, disclosed its second industry loss estimate for the New South Wales and Queensland floods, which occurred in March 2021. The second estimate of the insurance market loss is A$916 …

Update: Hurricane Enrique Brushes Past Mexico’s Pacific Coast

MEXICO CITY – The first hurricane of the eastern Pacific season brushed past the coastal shoulder of southwestern Mexico Monday, keeping just off shore while sweeping the coast with heavy rains and winds that raised the threat of flash floods …