December Tornado Outbreak Response

On December 10, 2021, what started as tornado activity in Arkansas spread across Missouri, Illinois, Tennessee, and Kentucky, resulting in the deadliest tornado outbreak in December on record.

Referred to as the Quad-State Tornado, the twister carved a trail of more than 200 consecutive miles, triggering additional tornadoes in its wake.

The National Weather Service confirmed a staggering 66 tornadoes reported in the area over the course of two days, tragically causing 90 deaths and more than 126 injuries. 

This violent series of tornadoes ripped through various states and counties downing power lines, ripping roofs off commercial buildings, and collapsing structures. It destroyed at least 100 businesses in Warren County alone. A wide-spread area of the country was affected, but the most severely damaging brunt of the storm was focused on Southwestern Kentucky as seen in the map below. 

Key:

Pink dots = tornado reported

Blue dots = damaging wind reported

Circled areas = main concentrations of areas with assured locations 

Falvey, as a cargo insurance provider, has a responsibility to all of our assureds to monitor and react to all developing threats to the interests of our clients. Immediately as forecasts were being reported, our loss prevention team charted the potentially affected areas against our insured locations using the power of our internal location management systems. In the map above, you will see the colored dots corresponding to reported tornado and damning wind occurrences with the areas with higher concentrations of assured locations circled in black. Areas surrounding Louisville Kentucky, Northeastern Arkansas, and the corridor between Missouri and Illinois had a significantly higher number of facilities than other regions affected by the storms. 

Though December tornadoes are not particularly rare, one this destructive—and deadly— is certainly an outlier.

In Mayfield alone, there were approximately 15,000 buildings damaged or destroyed, causing an estimated $3.5 billion in damage. 

Given the destructive power of these events, it is recommended best practice for assureds to understand their risks given all of the factors including geographical area, time of year, type of product and facility, and countless other considerations. This is one of the many areas where Falvey’s innovative approach to technology and consultative services can help. Underwriters will take available information and assess the natural catastrophic (CAT) perils, severity, and likelihood for each to impact a facility and/or book of business and provide a rating accordingly. From there, facilities are encouraged to work with our loss prevention to establish emergency prevention, response, and contingency plans for all potential hazards. Keeping ahead of incidents allows for optimized performance. 

That said, those who have business operations in tornado-susceptible areas, along with those who insure said businesses, need to take appropriate precautions.

Tornadoes and other wind events like hurricanes, winter storms, and straight-line windstorms can damage or demolish buildings and lead to massive financial impacts and potentially inoperable businesses. 

Our suggested approach centers around a few key principles. We collect data and information on impacted areas, map out projected impacts, determine severity with ongoing monitoring and proprietary “ProTecht risk scores”, identify individual accounts, and contact assured accounts with resources and loss prevention services. 

Because these natural disasters can be so destructive, we recommend following our preparedness guidelines:

• Identify all facilities that may be in danger of increased exposure to natural disasters.
• Understand the risk facing each facility based on its location, condition, and operations. 
• Establish a comprehensive emergency response preparedness plan for any possible event.
• Practice preparedness drills to familiarize staff and ensure effectiveness. 
• Update your procedures based on practice results feedback and new or changing information.

Mother Nature is an uncontrollable force, but at Falvey Insurance Group, we understand the importance of being prepared and responding to disasters. Contact us today to learn more about our loss prevention practices and how we can help protect your business operations.