Second-Warmest Year on Record Cost the World $210 Billion
- In the U.S., natural disasters caused $95 billion in damages
- Warming world to bring more perils, says insurer Munich Re
Source: AFP/Getty Images
The second-warmest year on record brought storms, fires and floods that killed at least 8,200 people and cost the world $210 billion in losses, according to a report by Munich Re.
The insurer is still calculating where 2020 ranks against other calamitous years but said damages last year exceeded those of 2019, which saw $166 billion in losses.
“Natural catastrophe losses in 2020 were significantly higher than the previous year,” Torsten Jeworrek, a member of Munich’s board of management said in the report. “Record numbers for many relevant hazards are a cause for concern, whether we are talking about the severe hurricane season, major wildfires or the series of thunderstorms in the U.S.”
Six of the most expensive disasters happened in the U.S., including a destructive derecho in the Midwest, a record number of tropical storms and hurricanes strikes and an all-time high acreage burn in California. U.S. damages totaled at least $95 billion, with $67 billion of that in insured losses, said Munich.