Weather Risk

Superstorm Sandy, a perfect storm that was caused by an unusual combination of seasonal weather phenomena converging above the Northeast, has stirred some conversation in the media about whether the storm was caused, or made worse, by climate change.

Risk Management Solutions says Sandy's impact on the East Coast is much more severe than last years Hurricane Irene. As emergency personnel, modelers and insurers assess the ultimate damage, some have connected the storm to hot topics such as federal risk-management strategies, insurers' disaster responses, and climate change.

Storm surge? There's an app for that. iPad users can learn about disaster preparedness and how to manage and insure flood-related risks.

A convective storm front on Wednesday caused six tornado touchdowns in Alabama and Arkansas and hail and wind damage in several other states, reports EQECAT, but 2012 has seen fewer of these storm systems than last year, forecasters say.

Reinsurers should take into account the fact that climate change has boosted natural catastrophes when they price weather disaster insurance, insurer Munich Re said.

Catlin's Seaview Survey shows that coral reefs, the first defense against coastal storm surges, are vanishing. Catlin is sponsoring the Survey to better understand the changes occurring to the planet so better decisions can be made about how to insure developing risks.