Severe weather losses from April and May triple annual average in U.S.

Losses stemming from severe weather in the United States during April and May were nearly triple the 1990-2010 annual average for severe weather losses, an Aon Benfield report says.
Insured losses during the two-month period are estimated at $15 billion. Total economic losses during the same time frame are estimated at $21.65 billion, the report says.
The report, United States April and May 2011 Severe Weather Outbreak, examines the active stretch of severe weather that occurred across areas east of the Rocky Mountains. At least eight separate timeframes saw widespread severe weather activity, including five separate outbreaks with losses in excess of $1 billion.
The period between Apr. 22-28 witnessed the largest tornado outbreak in world history, resulting in 334 separate tornado touchdowns. At least three EF-5 tornadoes touched down during this outbreak.
The Aon Benfield report doesn’t take into account damage from flooding, drought and wildfire, Accuweather.com said in a release. Accuweather.com pointed to flooding of the Mississippi River from Illinois to Louisiana that caused between $850 million and $2 billion in damage.
“The severe weather events included in Aon Benfield’s reports, added together with some other unusual weather events, total between $23 billion and $28 billion,” Accuweather.com said.
“For comparison, the top estimate, $28 billion, is three times the 2011 operating budget for the Environmental Protection Agency.”