Natural disasters in Asia and the Pacific cost nearly US$60 billion in economic losses, UN report says

More than half of the world’s 226 natural disasters occurred in the Asia and Pacific region last year, affecting 80 million people and costing nearly $60 billion in economic losses, said a new report from the United Nations.

Disasters in Asia and the Pacific: 2014 Year in Review, released by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific on Feb. 25, said that storms, transboundary floods and landslides collectively contributed to the region’s total economic losses of $59.6 billion. All figures are in United States dollars. [Click image below to enlarge]

Hydrological and meteorological events such as floods, storms and droughts accounted for $52.6 billion, or 88% of these losses. The highest reported economic losses came from India and China, with India incurring $27 billion (or 45% of the Asia-Pacific region’s total losses), while China reported losses of US$23 billion (or 39%).

Tropical cyclones, such as Hudhud (India), Lingling and Kajiki (Japan) and Hagupit (Philippines) resulted in economic losses of about $11 billion (India), $5.2 billion (Japan) and $75 billion (Philippines), respectively. Transboundary floods that affected India and Pakistan resulted in losses of at least $18 billion, the largest of which was the river basin flood in India that caused 1,281 fatalities in $16 billion in damages.

“The lessons from 2014 clearly show that building resilience remains a key priority in protecting lives and assets in the Asia and the Pacific,” the UN said in a press release.

In particular, economic losses in 2014 for the Asia-Pacific region total US$26.8 billion for floods, $25.8 billion for storms and $6.7 billion for earthquakes. Tropical cyclone Hudhud alone, which made landfall near the Indian port of Visakhapatnam on Oct. 12 as a Category 4 storm, cost $11 billion to critical infrastructure, including the airport, navy installations, key industries and infrastructure.

In addition to the economic losses, natural disasters in Asia and the Pacific region caused more than 6,000 fatalities, compared to 18,744 deaths in 2013, the report said. An estimated 79.6 million people were affected in the region.