Losses from Natural Disasters 2014
Natural disasters caused economic losses of 113 billion dollars around the world in 2014, according to estimates of the insurance company Swiss Re, announced on Wednesday, reports AFP.
This is 16 percent less than the cost of losses in 2013 ($ 135 billion) and significantly below the annual average of 188 billion dollars over the previous 10 years. Insurers to cover losses at $ 34 billion, which is 24 percent less than the amount indicated in the previous 2013, to the report of the company. About 11 thousand people died as a result of natural disasters this year, against more than 27 thousand a year earlier.
Of the total economic losses calculated at the end of November, the majority – 106 billion dollars spent on disaster management. Storms in the US earlier this year caused damage and insurance coverage in the amount of $ 1.7 billion, while later the May storm cost much more – $ 2.9 billion. Strong winds and heavy rains in Mexico due to Hurricane Odile caused damage by 1.6 billion dollars, and the winds and hail in some parts of France, Germany and Belgium in June were worth $ 2.7 billion.
Swiss Re representatives claim that it is too early to calculate the losses from drought in China, from which may be affected agricultural crops. There are no data on the economic damage caused by typhoon Hagupit in the Philippines which occurred earlier this month, but according to preliminary estimates it should be less than the damage caused by typhoon Haiyang in 2013.
The World Bank also found that, in monetary terms, the hardest hit by natural disasters, developing poor countries, where the damage from them in 2001-2006 amounted to 1% of GDP. For comparison, the developed countries during the same period for the same reason have lost ten times less.
