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Superstorm Sandy’s Impact on Flood Risk Assessment, Mitigation 5 Years Later

It’s been five years since Superstorm Sandy caused widespread devastation to the East Coast, causing an estimated $18.75 billion in insured property losses at the time, according to ISO’s Property Claim Services (PCS). In an interview with Claims Journal, Marc …

Arizona High Court Declines to Review Homeowners’ Yarnell Wildfire Case

The Arizona Supreme Court has declined to review a case involving the deadly Yarnell Hill wildfire that devastated a rural Arizona community in 2013 and killed 19 elite firefighters. The decision leaves intact the Arizona Court of Appeals’ ruling seven …

Daylight Saving Time Can Lead to Driver Fatigue, Crash Risks

As clocks “fall back” this weekend and daylight saving time ends, many Americans will be driving longer at night which could translate to more driver fatigue and hazards on the road, says Virginia Tech Transportation Institute expert Jeff Hickman. “Any …

Arkansas Seeks Comments as it Considers 75 MPH Speed Limit

Arkansas opened a 45-day comment period Monday on whether highway officials should let motorists drive at higher speeds and within minutes had elicited confessions from drivers who wrote that, while they themselves speed, other drivers are going even faster. Legislators …

Waymo Progresses to Totally Driverless Cars, Trucks

Google’s self-driving car spin-off is accelerating efforts to convince the public that its technology is almost ready to safely transport people without any human assistance at all. Waymo, hatched from a Google project started eight years ago, showed off its …

Colorado DOI Approves Nearly 13% Reduction in Workers’ Comp Loss Costs

Colorado businesses will see a large reduction in “loss costs” associated with workers’ compensation premiums in 2018, according to the Colorado Division of Insurance (DOI), part of the Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA). The department recently approved a large reduction …

High Court Refuses to Revive Louisiana Coastal Wetlands Suit

The U.S. Supreme Court refused Monday to revive a Louisiana flood protection board’s lawsuit seeking to make oil, gas and pipeline companies pay for decades of damage to coastal wetlands. The suit drew fierce opposition from the energy industry and …

Millions of Allegedly Defective Rail Ties Leads Railroad to Sue

One of the nation’s largest railroads must replace millions of defective wooden railroad ties on its tracks because they’re degrading faster than expected, the company said in a federal lawsuit. Norfolk Southern Railway blames an Alabama company that produced its …

Parametric Insurance Explored for U.S. Disasters

Catastrophic losses this year due to extreme weather events have led to a growing interest in parametric insurance in the U.S., according to industry experts. Weather stations and satellite images are helping to make parametric coverage an increasingly affordable and …

New Jersey Parents Warned to Watch for Marijuana-Laced Halloween Candy

New Jersey is warning parents to look out for people slipping their kids marijuana-laced candy while trick-or-treating. But with no apparent evidence that’s ever happened, advocates for legalizing the drug say it’s nothing more than a Halloween scare tactic. The …

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