Japanese police search a flooded area near the Chikuma River in the aftermath of Typhoon Hagibis
Reuters
Stormy season Japan topped last year’s global loss records thanks to super-typhoon Hagibis By Bernice Han
T
yphoon Hagibis was not just the most powerful storm to pummel Japan in decades when it made landfall last October. It was also the most costly natural disaster globally last year for the insurance industry. The category 5-equivalent super-typhoon, packing winds of 180 kmh near its centre, exacted $US10 billion in insured losses, Munich Re says in its annual natural catastrophe roundup. Economic losses from the storm cost $US17 billion. Another typhoon, Faxai, which struck the same greater Tokyo region a month earlier in September, ranked second, with insured claims of $US7 billion and $US9.1 billion in economic damages. It was the second consecutive year of record windstorm losses for the host nation
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of the 2020 Summer Olympics, which will be held in July. Numbers crunched by Aon are somewhat lower than Munich Re’s assessment, with Hagibis estimated to have racked up about $US9 billion in insurance payouts and Faxai $US6 billion. The preliminary numbers from Munich Re put the total economic bill from natural catastrophes last year at $US150 billion from 820 loss events. About 35% of the losses, or $US52 billion, were borne by insurers. In both economic and insured loss terms, the financial toll was well below that of the previous three years. The $US150 billion in economic damages is lower than the 10-year average of $US187 billion. A number of large events with losses in the low billions combined to push overall
losses over the $US100 billion mark. Hurricane Dorian, which lashed the Bahamas in August, ranked as the third most costly event for insurers, with $US4 billion in claims lodged. It was also one of the strongest Atlantic storms ever recorded and the most powerful to ever hit the Bahamas. By the time Dorian moved towards the US east coast, it had weakened considerably but still caused significant flooding. Munich Re says two separate storms in the US placed fourth and fifth with losses of $US3.6 billion and $US2 billion respectively. Cyclone Idai was the deadliest event last year, with more than 1000 lives lost when it hit Mozambique and neighbouring countries in south-east Africa in March. Globally, natural disasters killed 9000 people, down sharply from 15,000 in 2018.
