Severe weather systems spanning from Oklahoma to Georgia generated several tornadoes over the weekend, killing at least 22 people and inflicting severe property damage.
According to a report from Guy Carpenter, storms were caused by a cold front combining with warm, humid air over various states in the Midwest. The storms afflicted Oklahoma, Missouri, Georgia and Arkansas most severely, killing six people in Oklahoma, 15 in Missouri and one person in Georgia in addition to injuring more than 150 people. The governors of Oklahoma and Georgia have declared states of emergency in several counties.
The National Weather Service (NWS) reported that one tornado blew at speeds of 175 mph while traveling 63 miles from Oklahoma to southwest Missouri. The storms also spawned at least eight other tornadoes that struck towns in Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Georgia. An official surveying the damage in Oklahoma said it looked like a “war zone.”
According to the NWS, 2008 has seen an increase in tornado frequency from years' past. So far this year, the NWS has received reports of 819 tornadoes, dwarfing the average of 539 tornadoes from January through May over the last three years.
To read Guy Carpenter's complete report, go to their HYPERLINK “http://www.guycarp.com/portalapp/publicsite/catdocument.pdf?instratreportid=1685″ Instrat website.
Interested in more catastrophe news and in-depth articles? Head over to Claims' catastrophe channel for more information.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free PropertyCasualty360 Digital Reader
Your access to unlimited PropertyCasualty360 content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
