Monday, December 29, 2008

"Natural disasters cost more than 220,000 lives"

From Bloomberg:

"By Aaron Kirchfeld

Dec. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Losses from natural catastrophes rose to the third-highest level on record as climate change fueled cyclones and hurricanes and China was hit by the Sichuan earthquake, according to a report from Munich Re.

Worldwide insured losses related to natural catastrophes increased about 50 percent to an estimated $45 billion last year compared with 2007, the world’s biggest reinsurer said in an e- mailed statement today. Overall losses more than doubled to about $200 billion, the Munich-based company said.

Natural disasters cost more than 220,000( 220,000) lives even as the total number of such events declined 22 percent to 750, the report showed. China’s earthquake in Sichuan province in May claimed about 70,000 lives and cost $85 billion in overall losses, while Tropical Cyclone Nargis killed about 84,500 in Myanmar. September’s Hurricane Ike in the U.S. was the most expensive natural disaster for insurers, costing $15 billion.

“Climate change has already started and is very probably contributing to increasingly frequent weather extremes and ensuing natural catastrophes,” management board member Torsten Jeworrek said. “2008 has again shown how important it is for us to analyze risks like climate change in all their facets and to manage the business accordingly.”

We'd better start addressing this, because it's addressing us, and there's no return to sender.

No comments: