The Economic Toll of Natural Disasters

CATASTROPHIC COSTS The Economic Toll of Natural Disasters The destruction left in the wake of natural disasters has caused more than $2 trillion in economic and insurance losses in the past decade. The Cost of Catastrophe Japan Earthquake/Tsunami – 2011 $210 Billion Economic Loss 19 15,895 Fatalities On March 11th 2011 a magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck off the coast of Japan, the quake and the resulting tsunami caused widespread destruction. The estimated economic cost is in excess of US$210 billion, making it the costliest natural disaster in world history United States Hurricane Katrina - 2005 $125 Billion Economic Loss 1,833 Fatalities Hurricane Katrina was one of the deadliest hurricanes ever to hit the United States as over 1800 people died in the hurricane and the flooding that followed in late August 2005. The aftermath of Katrina left millions left homeless along the Gulf Coast most particularly in New Orleans, Louisiana. China Sichuan Earthquake – 2008 $85 Billion Economic Loss 87,587 Fatalities When the 7.9 magnitude earthquake struck the Sichuan province in May 2008 almost 90 thousand people lost their lives and millions more were displaced. The Sichuan earthquake has the highest homeless count in history with at least 4,800,000 people requiring shelter due to their homes being destroyed. Haiti Earthquake- 2010 $8 Billion Economic Loss YY 230,000 - 316,000 Fatalities The island nation of Haiti was all but destroyed when a 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck Haiti on January 12th 2010. The death toll is still not definite, however more than 230,000 deaths have been confirmed. Within a year more than 1,000 Haitian orphans were adopted in the United States due to the Help Haiti Act. Indonesia Great Indian Ocean Tsunami – 2004 $14 Billion Economic Loss 227,898 Fatalities This 9.0 magnitude earthquake struck under the Indian Ocean on December 26th 2004 sending an enormous tsunami across 11 countries. Within 24 hours more than 150,000 people were dead or missing and millions more were homeless. The earthquake that caused it all is estimated to have released the energy of 23,000 Hiroshima-type atomic bombs. Which Disasters Cost the Most? Over the past 10 years $2.1 trillion has been lost due to natural disasters, here's the breakdown: Total Destruction $2.1 trillion $601.5bn $520bn $470bn $130bn $214bn $46bn $95.5bn $41.5bn $15bn Wildfire Windstorm Drought Tropical Hurricane Severe Flooding Earthquake Winter Volcanic Weather Eruptions & other Weather Disastrous Facts 2.6 Billion people have been affected by natural disasters in the past decade Of those that have been killed in floods, 95% tried to outrun the waters along their path rather than attempted to get to high ground. Every second, a large hurricane releases the The greatest famine in history killed around 45 million people in China between 1958 and 1962. The cost of damage caused by disasters is 15 times higher than it was 50 energy of 10 atomic bombs. years ago Disasters Around the World* Americas Europe Asia 79 65 145 Oceana Africa 11 57 *latest figures from 2012 (Center for Research on Environmental Decisions) References: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learn/facts.php http://www.dailyworldfacts.com/flood-facts/ http://worlddisastersreport.org/en/data/index.html http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/earth/natural_disasters http://www.live58.org/10-facts-about-natural-disasters http://catastropheinsight.aonbenfield.com/Pages/Home.aspx http://www.hurricane-facts.com/Interesting-Hurricane-Facts.php http://whatthafact.com/interesting-facts-about-natural-disasters/ http://www.ehow.com/facts_5518905_strange-natural-disaster.html http://edition.cnn.com/2013/12/12/world/haiti-earthquake-fast-facts/ http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/world/most_destructive.php https://www.dosomething.org/actnow/tipsandtools/11-facts-about-disasters http://www.ibtimes.com/report-ten-most-expensive-natural-disasters-2013-1540058 http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-blogs/climatechange/steady-increase-in-climate-rel/19974069 http://www.statista.com/statistics/269653/natural-disasters-on-the-continents-by-nature-of-the-disaster/ BCM BALCOMBES CLAIMS MANAGEMENT www.balcombes.ie Over 45 Million 95%