Top 10 Climate Disaster Damages This Year Total 202 Trillion Won... Ida 77 Trillion Won

U.S. President Joe Biden boarded the Marine One helicopter on September 3 (local time) to survey the damage caused by Hurricane Ida in Lafitte and other areas of Louisiana from the air.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] The damage caused by the top 10 climate disasters worldwide this year has been estimated at $170.3 billion (approximately 202 trillion KRW).

According to AFP on the 26th (local time), the UK charity Christian Aid calculated the damage costs of this year's top 10 weather disasters such as floods, fires, and heatwaves based on insurance claim data, arriving at this result.

The disaster with the greatest damage was Category 4 Hurricane Ida, which struck Louisiana and other areas in the United States on August 26. The damage amounted to $65 billion (approximately 77 trillion KRW), with 95 fatalities.

The second most costly climate disaster was the European floods that swept through Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and others from July 12 to 18. The damage totaled $43 billion (approximately 51 trillion KRW), with the death toll reaching 240. The exact number of displaced persons has not been accurately determined.

The third most damaging disaster was the winter storm that occurred in Texas, USA, from February 2 to 20. It caused 210 deaths and the damage was estimated at $23 billion (approximately 27 trillion KRW).

The floods in Henan, China, from July 17 to 31 were also estimated to have caused $17.6 billion (approximately 21 trillion KRW) in damage. The death toll from this flood reached 302, and the number of displaced persons exceeded one million.

Christian Aid compiled the damage amounts based on insurance loss data. The actual damage could be even greater. Additionally, when calculating damage this way, there is a possibility that damages in developed countries are overestimated due to differences in asset prices.

Christian Aid stated, "Significant damage from climate disasters has occurred even in underdeveloped countries that have low greenhouse gas emissions and bear little responsibility for climate change," adding, "If countries do not urgently reduce greenhouse gas emissions, such disasters could worsen."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.