A Wake-Up Call from Hawaii: Why We Must Invest in Pre-Disaster Preparation

I was in Hawaii on vacation with my family when the tsunami alert came. It was issued following a powerful offshore earthquake–one of those moments where the routine hum of daily life is interrupted by sirens, alerts, and a sudden, sharp awareness of nature’s force. For many on the island, it was a familiar but unsettling drill. For me, it was a moment of clarity.

The tsunami never made landfall, thankfully. But the experience underscored something I’ve long believed, and something our industry has been sounding the alarm on for years: disasters are coming faster, harder, and more frequently. And too often, we wait for them to strike before we act.

Swiss Re Institute’s latest data supports what many of us in the reinsurance industry are seeing on the ground. In the first half of 2025 alone, insured losses from natural catastrophes totaled $80 billion–nearly double the 10-year average. Wildfires, like the ones that tore through Los Angeles County earlier this year, caused an unprecedented $40 billion in insured losses, making it the largest single wildfire loss on record. Severe thunderstorms added another $31 billion. And all of this happened before the peak of hurricane season.

These figures are more than just statistics. They represent families displaced, businesses lost, and communities forced to start over. In the face of this growing threat, pre-disaster preparation and mitigation are no longer optional. They are imperative.

Be Prepared

In my role at Swiss Re, I’ve seen the cost of reacting versus the value of preparing. Investing in mitigation–whether it’s retrofitting homes, reinforcing infrastructure, or implementing effective land-use planning–is not only cost-effective, but it also saves lives. Studies consistently show that every dollar spent on prevention returns many times its value in reduced damages and faster recovery. Flood defenses, for example, can be up to 10 times more cost-effective than rebuilding after a major event.

Yet, time and again, disaster funding follows the news cycle. Resources are poured into communities after the damage is done, while the ongoing work of preparation fails to capture headlines and secure necessary levels of investment. We need to flip that script and shift from a mindset of recovery to one of readiness.

Industry’s Role

This is where the insurance and reinsurance industries can play a transformative role. Beyond providing capital and absorbing risk, we bring deep expertise in modeling, forecasting, and scenario planning. We can help communities understand their risk exposure and prioritize where mitigation can make the greatest difference.

But we can’t do it alone.

Governments must act with urgency to modernize infrastructure, enforce updated building codes, and discourage development in high-risk areas. Communities must advocate for safer planning and make investments that may not pay off today but will ensure stability tomorrow. And as individuals, we must take preparedness seriously–because the risks are real and growing.

While in Hawaii, I was reminded how fragile–and how precious–our sense of safety is. A tsunami alert strips away complacency and leaves you face-to-face with the reality of risk. That moment reinforced my conviction that preparedness isn’t just a policy priority; it’s a human one.

We don’t have to resign ourselves to staggering losses each year. We have the tools, knowledge, and partnerships to change the trajectory. But we must act before the next alert, not after.