March windstorms caused billion-dollar damage across Europe: Impact Forecasting study

Total economic and insured losses from windstorms Mike and Niklas that swept through western and central Europe at the end of March are each expected to exceed $US1 billion, according to Impact Forecasting’s latest Global Catastrophe Recap report for the month of March.

Last month, windstorms Mike and Niklas tore through western and central Europe, killing at least nine people and causing widespread damage, said the report, released on Wednesday by Impact Forecasting, Aon Benfield’s catastrophe model development team. Hurricane-force winds, including a peak gust of 192 kilometres per hour, were noted in parts of Germany, the United Kingdom, Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, and Poland, with Germany sustaining the most significant damage.

“The costly losses endured from windstorms Niklas and Mike further highlight the importance of using catastrophe models to forecast the peril in Europe,” said Adam Podlaha, head of Impact Forecasting, in a press release, adding that the company successfully released an event footprint within 48 hours of Niklas’ passage.

Related: Insured losses from cyclone Niklas in Europe estimated at 1.0 billion to 1.9 euros: AIR Worldwide

Windstorm Niklas was recorded as the costliest non-United States event in the first quarter of 2015.

In the U.S., “large portions of the central and eastern United States were subject to two periods of winter weather during the first week of March,” affecting the Southwest, Rockies, Plains, South, Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, and Northeast and killing 13 people and causing widespread damage. Total economic losses were estimated at $US175 million, while insurers reported losses in excess of $US110 million. [click image below to enlarge]

Cyclone Pam became the strongest cyclone to make landfall globally since 2013’s Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines when it struck the South Pacific archipelago of Vanuatu, killing at least 11 people and injuring several others. On multiple islands, including an island including the capital city of Port Vila, 90 percent of homes and structures were damaged or destroyed as Vanuatu received a preliminary insurance payout of $US1.9 million from the Pacific Catastrophe Risk Insurance Pilot program.

Related: Cyclone Pam displaces 3,300, kills 24 in Vanuatu: United Nations

In China, hail damage, predominantly to agricultural lands and construction facilities in northwestern and southern sections of the country, resulted in forecast economic losses of $US275 million. Multiple moderate earthquakes also struck the country during March, killing two people and damaging a combined 33,000 homes. Total economic losses were listed at roughly $US40 million.

Storm Niklas rages through Europe, killing at least 4 (PHOTOS, VIDEO) pic.twitter.com/sPc2BC6ENP

— RT (@RT_com) April 1, 2015

#GERMANY Seven lives claimed by Storm #Niklas http://t.co/2IDCI8SGEO pic.twitter.com/0vyFSAQpic

— abc (@SAWHNEY62) April 1, 2015