Natural Disasters

If you're spending a lot of money on a trip, consider buying travel insurance to protect yourself against the unexpected. Key things to know: • Typically, travel insurance reimburses you for such things as nonrefundable cruise deposits or airfares - and for the cost of rescheduling flights - when weather, illness, natural disaster or terrorism cause your trip to be canceled or delayed. Plans differ slightly from one another, so be sure to read the fine print. • Some policies cover medical expenses incurred outside the United States, and may pay for emergency evacuation in case of a serious injury or health problem.

The swarm of earthquakes in Imperial County this week serves as an unexpected prelude to National Preparedness Month, a.k.a. September. Southern California is home to 13 of the 16 catastrophic hazards that the U.S. government recognizes, including temblors, fires and severe weather, but most Angelenos are far from ready.  Just 20% of us have made plans or assembled kits that would help navigate a disaster, according to Chris Ipsen, public information...

TAMPA, Fla. -- The small-government ideals that have defined the GOP as the party opens its convention here are running into the big-government needs brought on by Tropical Storm Isaac. One Republican, Sen. David Vitter of Louisiana, called on President Obama on Monday to issue a disaster declaration, unleashing the federal aid that follows, as the hurricane churned toward the Gulf Coast. "State and local governments need every tool and resource available to respond to this rapidly approaching hurricane,” Vitter said in a statement.

A nighttime image of London and the southern part of Great Britain taken on March 27, 2012, shows some of the other sites where Olympic events will be held. The image was taken by the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership Satellite with a day-night band that uses light intensification to enable the detection of dim signals. Lee Valley White Water Center, indicated on the image, will be the site of canoeing; Portland Harbour will be the home of sailing; Eton Dorney will host rowing and canoeing; and Hadleigh Farm will be the location for cycling and mountain biking events.

A powerful and prolonged earthquake rocked Mexico on Tuesday, toppling houses near the epicenter in the south, cracking building facades in this sprawling capital and briefly terrifying a population well schooled in natural disasters. Despite the quake's 7.4 magnitude, however, there were no reports of serious injury, according to President Felipe Calderon and officials across the country. Aftershocks rattled the area through the rest of the day. "This is one of the strongest we've ever felt," said Calderon, who urged Mexicans to remain calm.

Kazuo Hirai had little to celebrate after just being crowned the next chief executive of Sony Corp. Pummeled by a weak global economy, natural disasters and a strong yen that made its products more expensive overseas, Sony said it was on track to lose $2.86 billion in its current fiscal year, one of the Japanese technology and entertainment giant's worst annual results. The projected annual loss was more than double what Sony anticipated just three months ago when it forecast a $1.2-billion loss for its fiscal year ending March 31. Although the lion's share of the additional red ink - about $1.5 billion - would come from one-time charges from the sale of its stake in an LCD panel facility, foreign exchange fluctuations and other write-offs, about $181 million would be attributed to weakness in Sony's performance, analysts said.

The big Japanese automakers are happy to see 2011 in their rear-view mirrors. The Detroit auto companies posted a double-digit sales increase for the year, but the big Japanese brands -- especially Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. -- were hamstrung by a series of natural disasters. First, the Japanese earthquake and tsunami in March hit, and then, later in the year, flooding closed parts suppliers in Thailand, disrupting their global auto manufacturing and leaving them with too few cars for the American market.

At one point, the only sound is the tap of sneakers hitting pavement as 131 Japanese students march across the parking lot at Angel Stadium. The trombones, trumpets and saxophones are raised and then the jingle of the Super Mario theme song fills the air. Performers multi-task by dancing: Those with free hands gesture like robots, mimicking the famed Mario, and others jump to the sound of a bell, much like the video game's chime when characters collect...

From its inception on Dec. 4, 1881, the Los Angeles Times has been an integral part of this great city. Our metropolis has changed dramatically over the last 130 years, but one thing has remained constant: The Los Angeles Times has landed on doorsteps -- and now computer screens and cellphones -- every single day. Our commitment to covering the news -- the first draft of history, as Phillip Graham famously called it -- is unwavering....