CHICAGO, Oct. 5, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Impact
Forecasting, Aon Benfield's
catastrophe model development team, today launches the latest
edition of its monthly Global Catastrophe Recap report, which
evaluates the impact of the natural disaster events that occurred
worldwide during September 2017. Aon
Benfield is the global reinsurance intermediary and capital advisor
of Aon plc (NYSE: AON).
The report reveals that Hurricane Irma crossed through the
northern Caribbean as a Category 5
hurricane, before making landfall in the
United States to become the first Category 4 landfall in
Florida since 2004 (Hurricane
Charley). At least 124 people were killed or missing and hundreds
more were injured, following periods of exceptionally gusty winds,
high surf, storm surge, torrential rains and inland flooding. Major
damage was noted in the United
States, Cuba, Barbuda, the Virgin
Islands, and the northern Leeward Islands.
Hurricane Maria became the second landfalling Category 5
hurricane in a matter of weeks, when it struck Dominica and grazed St. Croix. The storm later
crossed Puerto Rico as a high-end
Category 4 – the strongest storm to hit the island since 1932 –
resulting in catastrophic damage and impacts. Additional damage was
noted in the Dominican Republic
and Haiti. At least 78 people were
confirmed dead and many others were considered missing.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center reported that the
September 2017 was the most active
month ever recorded for tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean
when measuring the combined strength and duration of storms in the
basin.
With assessments still ongoing for both Irma and Maria, it
remains too early to provide a specific economic or insured loss
estimate for each event – especially given the prolonged business
interruption impact. The overall financial toll of each storm is
expected to reach well into the tens of billions (USD). In each
instance, public and private insurers faced payouts considerably
exceeding USD10 billion.
Elsewhere during the month, Mexico was impacted by Tropical Storm Lidia,
which killed 20 people when it tracked along Mexico's Baja
Peninsula, and three powerful earthquakes.
The temblors included the strongest earthquake of 2017: a
magnitude-8.1 event that struck offshore the state of Chiapas, followed by a magnitude-6.2
aftershock, which together killed at least 103 people. A
magnitude-7.1 earthquake then struck central Mexico, killing at least 367 people and
injuring thousands more.
Total combined economic damage was expected to reach into the
billions of dollars (USD).
Steve Bowen, Impact Forecasting
director and meteorologist, said: "The month of September was
exceptionally busy and marked by the most active month on record in
the Atlantic Ocean for hurricanes based on combined strength and
longevity. The most prolific damage resulted from Hurricane Irma's
impact across the United States
and the Caribbean, and Hurricane
Maria's track through the Caribbean. These events were poised to cause a
heavy financial burden for federal governments and the insurance
industry. Additionally, two major earthquakes and a powerful
aftershock in Mexico led to
catastrophic damage. When combining event impacts from July and
August, the third quarter of 2017 is expected to tally as one of
the costliest quarters ever registered for natural disasters."
Further natural hazard events to have occurred worldwide in
September include:
- Typhoon Doksuri left extensive damage across Vietnam, the
Philippines, southern China
and Laos, killing 40 people and
damaging nearly 250,000 homes. Economic losses was listed at
USD500 million.
- Tropical Storm Talim caused damage in Japan, damaging nearly 7,000 homes.
- A storm system prompted days of flash flooding in regions of
Italy and Croatia, killing at least nine people.
Economic damage was listed at USD250
million in Italy, and
USD160 million in Croatia.
- Flood events occurred in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where at least
105 people were killed; Uganda,
where 23 people were killed or missing; and China, which sustained USD481 million in economic damage.
- Separate severe weather outbreaks in mid-September killed eight
people in Romania, and damaged
2,400 homes and large swaths of agriculture in China.
- Windstorm Sebastian swept through the United Kingdom, the
Netherlands, and Germany on
September 12-13, killing three people
and causing extensive damage to agriculture in Germany.
- Major wildfires impacted the western United States, destroying dozens of homes and
structures.
To view the full Impact Forecasting September 2017 Global Catastrophe Recap report,
please follow the link:
http://aon.io/2gdZflS
Along with the report, users can access current and historical
natural catastrophe data and event analysis on Impact Forecasting's
Catastrophe Insight website, which is updated bi-monthly as new
data become available:
www.aonbenfield.com/catastropheinsight
Further information
For further information please contact the Aon Benfield PR team:
Andrew Wragg (+44 207 522 8183 / 07595 217168) David Bogg or
Alexandra Lewis
Follow Aon on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Aon_plc
For information on Aon plc. and to sign-up for news
alerts: http://aon.mediaroom.com
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SOURCE Aon plc; Aon Benfield