loss News

Downfall Eases, Improving Rescue Efforts After Massive Hawaii Storm

Heavy rains on Kauai let up this week, which helped emergency workers better rescue people stranded by flooding on the Hawaiian island. By Monday afternoon, emergency crews evacuated 152 people by helicopter, 121 people by bus and others by water, …

California Spent $1.8B Fighting 2017 Wildfires

California state agencies spent nearly $1.8 billion fighting fierce wildfires that killed dozens of people and destroyed thousands of homes and businesses last year, legislative budget experts reported Thursday. The federal government will reimburse most of the costs, but the …

Fire Chiefs in California Want Money to Prepare for Wildfires

California fire chiefs said that reinforcements were too slow to arrive in last year’s ferocious firestorms and asked lawmakers for $100 million to call in extra firefighters when weather conditions are ripe for a conflagration. The fire chiefs said drought …

California Commissioner Says Insurers Should Cover Mudslide if Fire Was Cause

California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones today issued a formal notice to all property/casualty insurers reminding them of their duty to cover damages from the recent mudslide and debris flows if it is determined that the burning of hillsides and vegetation …

Some California Mudslide Victims Returning to Homes as Evacuation Orders Begin to Lift

Authorities are allowing some Montecito residents to return home, two weeks after mudslides ravaged the Southern California community and killed at least 21 people. Santa Barbara County spokeswoman Gina DePinto says mandatory and voluntary evacuations for about 1,000 households were …

Conflicting California Mudslide Warnings Were Issued, Report Shows

In the days before mudslides devastated California neighborhoods, officials released conflicting evacuation orders that left some hard-hit neighborhoods out of the warning zone, a newspaper reported. The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office had posted on its website and on Facebook …

Homes Destroyed, Power Outages in Texas Storm

Heavy thunderstorms produced hail and possible tornadoes in northeast Texas on Sunday night, with the communities of DeKalb and Winnsboro hardest hit, according to the Insurance Council of Texas. In DeKalb, a possible tornado struck the city’s south side causing …

Insurers Increasing Payments to California Wildfire Victims Sans Itemization

California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones on Thursday released the results of the formal notice he issued last month to all residential property insurers requesting they provide up to 100 percent of contents coverage limits for fire survivors who experienced a …

Hard-hit California Town to Get Little Rain from Storm

Crews clearing mud and restoring utilities in Montecito, California, have another day of dry weather before the next chance of rain, but forecasters say the approaching system is weakening. The National Weather Service says Montecito should see very little precipitation …

Washington Town on High Alert over Slow-Moving Landslide

A slow-moving landslide in central Washington state has forced evacuations as officials prepare for what they say is inevitable – the collapse of a ridge near an interstate highway. Washington is wary of landslides following one in 2014 that killed …