Not only were at least 14 casinos toast, following the double whammy of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, casino companies will be feeling a sizeable aftershock, if the latest SEC filing from Pinnacle Entertainment is any indication. Buried in the last paragraph is the grim news that, due to the severity of recent hurricane damage, Pinnacle’s insurers are drastically retrenching.

Whereas Pinnacle used to be able to draw upon as much as $400 million in coverage per weather catastrophe, its insurers have now whacked that number down by 75%. Retroactive to April 1, Pinnacle will only be able to count on $100 million in coverage per each wrathful act of Mother Nature. And with global warming increasing the frequency of hurricanes, this is anything but good news for Gulf Coast casinos.

Nor are PNK shareholders likely to take great comfort in the closing lines of the 8-K filing:

It is unlikely that Pinnacle will obtain any additional insurance coverage covering these risks this year. If any of its properties suffers a weather catastrophe occurrence, any damages in excess of the new coverage limits will likely be borne by Pinnacle.

In other words, future hurricane damage = kiss those profits goodbye.

If this severely increased exposure is happening to Pinnacle, it’s reasonable to presume that every other Gulf Coast casino owner is in the same pickle. Should this financial predicament add any additional impetus to move Midwestern and Southern casinos off the water and onto the (relative) safety of dry land, then last summer’s ill winds will have blown some good.