U.S., Global Natural Disasters Exact Heavy Toll in May

Severe weather in May caused an estimated $4 billion in insured damage in the U.S. alone and billions more in economic losses around the globe, according to an Aon Benfield report.

The Global Catastrophe Recap by Aon Benfield’s catastrophe modeling center, Impact Forecasting, reviews the natural disaster perils that occurred worldwide during May 2013 including tornadoes in Oklahoma, Italy and Russia; flooding in the Midwest and central Europe; and drought conditions in Brazil.

Several regions of the U.S. were hit with severe windstorm events during the month, including Moore, Oklahoma, where a catastrophic EF-5 tornado killed 24 people, injured 387 others, and damaged or destroyed up to 13,000 homes and structures.

Total economic losses from the event, which comprised at least 61 confirmed tornado touchdowns, were preliminarily estimated at $5.0 billion, amid insured losses of at least $2.5 billion.

In a second prolonged severe weather event, at least 76 tornadoes touched down, including an EF-5 tornado with 295 mph (475 kph) winds and a U.S.-record 2.6-mile (4.2-kilometer) path width that struck El Reno, Oklahoma.

Large hail (including a major hailstorm in Amarillo, Texas that resulted in a $400 million insured loss), flash flooding in the Plains and Midwest, and damaging winds in the Northeast were also recorded.

Total economic losses are expected to exceed $2.0 billion, with insured losses above $1.0 billion.

Two additional stretches of severe weather also affected parts of the Plains and the Southeast, causing a combined economic loss of $700 million and insured losses of $375 million.

“Images from the aftermath of the EF-5 tornado in Moore, Oklahoma show the destructive power of the peril and how devastating impacts can be when tornadoes track through densely populated areas.,” said Steve Jakubowski, president of Impact Forecasting.

Topics Catastrophe USA Natural Disasters Oklahoma