Natural Hazards and Extreme Weather
47 articles in this category
How to Protect Your Facility from Hailstorm Damage
When the sky darkens and the rumble of thunder rolls in, your facility could be just minutes away from a costly hailstorm disaster. Imagine baseball-sized hailstones crashing down—shattering...
A Year of Lessons: 2024’s Most Impactful Loss Events and What They Taught Us
Introduction Reflecting on the significant loss events of 2024 offers valuable insights for improving risk management strategies in 2025. From natural disasters and cybersecurity risks to industrial...
Wildfires
Wildfire Trends and Impact According to the National Interagency Fire Center (1), the number of wildfires and acres burned in the United States has increased significantly in recent years....
Convective Storms
Estimated reading time: 10 minutes Convective storms, including thunderstorms, tornadoes, and hailstorms, are a common weather phenomenon in America, affecting various regions throughout the...
Water and Liquid Damage Prevention
When considering property risks, fire is usually the first that comes to mind due to its common occurrence and potentially large consequences. However, from a frequency perspective, water/liquid...
Hurricane Warning Improved from 5 to 7-Day Notification
Hurricane season is upon us again in the USA. Most hurricanes hit the USA between June 1st and November 30th. In the past the National Hurricane Center (NHC) provided a 5 day warning for...
Recent Earthquakes Provide Reminder to Design and Prepare for Seismic Exposures
In the early morning of February 6th, 2023, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake with an epicenter near Nurda─ƒi, Turkey was felt throughout central Turkey and northern Syria. Approximately 11 minutes later, a...
Windstorm Standards: How did we get here?
Windstorm Standards Outline: Wind speeds Timeline of modern wind standards: ASCE International Building Code (IBC) FM Data Sheet 1-28 Safety Factor (SF) Conclusion On September 28, 2022,...
Windstorm Preparation Guide
Severe windstorm studies have shown that storm-related damage can be prevented or minimized. The keys to this are windstorm preparation planning in advance of the storm, and organized action during...
How to Protect your Facility in a Wildland Fire Zone
As communities grow, there are only two ways to build; up or out. Often times high rise structures near the center of a large city are already built, and are cost- or ordinance-prohibitive. The...
How to Prevent & Prepare for Wildland Fires
In a recent 10-yr. period, wildfires have impacted an average of 7.5 million acres of land each year throughout the United States.(1) Eight of the top ten costliest wildland fires in the US have...
Managing Property Risks at Casinos
Nearly everyone has some experience in a casino. Whether you are a high roller playing your favorite table game, playing the penny slots, or just driving down Las Vegas Boulevard as a tourist,...