The company's annual report put the overall economic losses from natural disasters worldwide last year at
Insured losses in 2021 amounted to
More than a third of those insured losses last year were caused by Ida (
Almost 10,000 died as a result of a natural disaster in 2021, comparable to the death toll in recent years,
The company warned that studies showed a link between global warming and natural disasters.
“The images of natural disasters in 2021 are disturbing," said
“Climate research increasingly confirms that extreme weather has become more likely,” he said. “Societies need to urgently adapt to increasing weather risks and make climate protection a priority.”
Satellite measurements show 2021 was one of the warmest years on record, with the annual average temperature 1.1-1.2 degrees Celsius higher than the pre-industrial period from 1850-1900, the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service said Monday.
Scientists say that higher temperatures can cause the air to absorb more moisture, which can then lead to more extreme rainfall such as that seen in western
The resulting floods devastated whole villages and killed more than 220 people in what insurance companies said was the costliest natural disaster
“Even though events cannot automatically be attributed to climate change, analysis of the changes over decades provides plausible indications of a connection with the warming of the atmosphere and the oceans,” said
The company noted that not all natural disasters are climate-related, citing volcanic eruptions in
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