CHICAGO, Aug. 6, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Aon plc (NYSE:
AON), a leading global professional services firm providing a broad
range of risk, retirement and health solutions, 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 July
2020.
The report reveals that persistent seasonal rainfall worsened
the flood situation across China's
Yangtze River Basin during the month, with the death toll since
June 1 rising to at least 175, as
extensive flooding affected the hardest-hit provinces of
Anhui, Hubei and Chongqing municipality. The Ministry of
Emergency Management (MEM) noted that nearly 500,000 homes had been
damaged or destroyed and 5.2 million hectares (13 million acres) of
cropland affected. Direct seasonal economic losses were estimated
at CNY150 billion ($22 billion), of which nearly $16 billion occurred in July. Most of the losses
were anticipated to be uninsured.
Hurricane Hanna became the earliest eighth-named "H" storm on
record in the Atlantic Basin, in addition to being the first
hurricane of the 2020 Atlantic Season. Hanna made landfall along
the southern Texas coast on
July 25 as a 90 mph (150 kph)
Category 1 storm. Several feet of storm surge were noted near the
landfall location, in addition to hurricane-force wind gusts and
torrential rains that prompted inland flooding. Some of the worst
flood damage was found in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas into northern Mexico. Total economic losses were estimated
into the hundreds of millions of dollars (USD).
Tropical Storm Fay, the earliest sixth-named "F" storm on record
in the Atlantic Ocean, killed six people after making landfall in
the United States along the
New Jersey coast, north of
Atlantic City, on July 10 with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph
(85 kph). Total economic losses were estimated at $350 million, with public and private insurers
covering roughly one-third of the damage cost.
Michal Lörinc, catastrophe analyst on the Impact Forecasting
team at Aon, said, "Despite a record early start to the Atlantic
Hurricane Season, the most significant natural peril events were
actually noted in Asia during
July. An active monsoon season prompted more than $20 billion in flood-related damage in parts of
China, Japan, India
and Bangladesh during the month
alone. Much of the physical damage to property, infrastructure and
agriculture was anticipated to be uninsured – only reinforcing the
importance of finding ways to help lower the protection gap across
the region. Utilizing tools such as catastrophe models can help aid
in identifying areas of highest risk."
Further natural hazard events to have occurred in July
include:
- Record-breaking rainfall triggered widespread flash flooding
and landslides across southern Japan from July
3-10, killing at least 82 people and injuring 114 others.
Flood damage was most severe on Kyushu Island as dozens of
prefectures reported varying levels of physical damage impacts to
homes, businesses, infrastructure and agriculture. The event
prompted a nearly $4 billion recovery
effort by the federal government.
- Multiple severe weather events affected the United States; the costliest outbreak –
with primary hazards comprising hail, straight-line winds, and
isolated tornadoes – occurred on July
10-12 with widespread impacts from the Rockies into the
Midwest. Total economic losses were estimated to reach above
$900 million, with a majority being
insured.
- A large wildfire broke in Ukraine's Novoaidar district of the Luhansk
region on July 6 and spread to about
8,000 hectares (20,00 acres), killing five people. According to a
national forestry agency, losses to the industry might exceed
UAH4.0 billion ($144 million);
however, this total was only a preliminary estimation.
- Uncharacteristic and ongoing heavy rainfall led to extensive
damage and humanitarian impacts across Somalia during the second half of June through
July, killing four people. One of the hardest-hit areas was the
Shabelle River Basin, as nearly 200,000 people were displaced from
their homes following significant river overflow. More than 200,000
hectares (494,211 acres) of cropland was also submerged. Further
flood damage was noted in the districts of Hirshabelle, South West,
Jubaland and Mogadishu.
- Record-breaking rains, described as a 1-in-500-year event by
the Meteorological Service of New
Zealand, triggered flash flooding and landslides in northern
and western New Zealand on
July 17-18. Thousands of homes and a
vast area of agricultural land in Northland were inundated. Local
authorities of New Zealand
expected a multi-million-dollar level of direct damage and economic
loss.
To view the full Impact Forecasting July
2020 Global Catastrophe Recap report, please follow the
link:
http://thoughtleadership.aon.com/documents/20200805_analytics-if-july-global-recap.pdf
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:
http://catastropheinsight.aon.com
About Aon
Aon plc (NYSE:AON) is a leading global
professional services firm providing a broad range of risk,
retirement and health solutions. Our 50,000 colleagues in 120
countries empower results for clients by using proprietary data and
analytics to deliver insights that reduce volatility and improve
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Media Contact
Andrew
Wragg
andrew.wragg@aon.com
+44 (0)7595 217168
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SOURCE Aon plc