MUNICH (dpa-AFX) - According to preliminary estimates, hurricanes and typhoons caused total losses of 133 billion dollars this year. This makes this year's storm season the most expensive since 2017, according to the geoscientists at reinsurer Munich Re.

The economic losses significantly exceeded both the ten-year average (89.2 billion dollars) and the thirty-year average (62.6 billion). The main cause was the severe hurricane season in the North Atlantic, which, according to Munich Re, caused total losses of 110 billion dollars in North America alone.

"Helene" alone caused over 50 billion dollars in damage

"Hurricane" and "typhoon" are different names for the tropical cyclones that form in the North Atlantic and northwestern Pacific when the surface temperature of the sea water is high. Eighteen cyclones were counted in the North Atlantic, eleven of which reached hurricane strength. The long-term average is twelve hurricanes.

The deadliest and most expensive hurricane of the year was "Helene" with wind speeds of up to 225 kilometers per hour, over 200 fatalities and damage of 56 billion dollars in several US states.

In the western Pacific, typhoons often hit Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, south-eastern China and Vietnam during the summer months. According to Munich Re, the number of cyclones in East and Southeast Asia was actually slightly below average at 25, but the losses were slightly above average at 22 billion dollars.

Warm seawater favors severe hurricanes

Meteorologists and climate scientists see a connection between the increasing devastation caused by hurricanes and global warming. According to Munich Re, seawater temperatures in the North Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico have been close to or above the record temperatures measured to date for almost the entire storm season.

The experts at the Dax-listed company refer to studies according to which the unusual warming of the seawater causes storms to become stronger and bring greater amounts of rain.

The sum of 133 billion dollars quoted by Munich Re refers to the estimated total economic losses. Of this, 51 billion euros was insured, i.e. less than half.

Other natural disasters also very expensive in 2024

According to Munich Re's calculations, the insured losses from global natural catastrophes, including floods, other storms and earthquakes around the world, exceeded the 100 billion euro threshold before the end of the year.

The company is the world's largest reinsurer and has operated its own geosciences department for decades to assess the risks of natural catastrophes./cho/DP/ngu