Be prepared for ‘The Big One’
For a number of years, I have taught a class for the Insurance Industry titled 鈥淲eather Disaster and Insurance.鈥� When a disaster strikes, many times it is the insurance industry that is called upon to put the pieces back together. Government also can help, but it is the insurance policy on your home, car or business that has the biggest impact in getting you back to normal. In the outline for the class, there was a section called 鈥淭he Big One鈥� in which we discussed the various types of disasters and their impact on our lives.
Early on, we discussed Hurricane Andrew that hit Florida in 1992, causing $30 billion in damages, in spite of the fact that Andrew hit a sparsely populated area south of Miami. Andrew killed nine people and went on to ravage Louisiana after crossing Florida and the Gulf of Mexico. In 2008, Hurricane Ike smashed into Texas killing 112 and causing $29 billion in damage. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy hit the Northeast killing 159 and doing $50 billion in damage. In 2005, hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans killing 1,836 and causing $149 billion in destruction. By far, Katrina was the 鈥淏ig One鈥� until this past week. It looks like Harvey will gain the title of the 鈥淏ig One鈥� as early estimates place damages between $150 and $200 billion, making it the costliest hurricane in our history. The death toll stands at 40.
Many areas of our country are also vulnerable to earthquakes. The Northridge quake in 1994 killed 60 and caused $65 billion of damage in 18 seconds in the San Francisco region. Floods and tornadoes also cause a lot of death and destruction as well. In 1993, floods in the Midwest killed 48 and did $34 billion in damage.
Tornadoes kill several hundred people each year, however since these storms only affect small areas, damages are usually in the millions instead of billions. Perhaps the worst natural disaster in our area occurred in nearby Johnstown when the South Fork dam gave way after heavy rains and killed 2,000 back in 1899.
In our study of disasters that affect the United States, it may surprise you to know that heat is the big killer and also is responsible for a lot of property damage. In 1980, an estimated 10,000 died across the United States when a relentless heat wave engulfed most of the country. It was also responsible for over $56 billion in damages. Again in the summer of 1988, over 7,500 were killed when relentless heat returned to the Central and Eastern United States. Our area saw temperatures more than 100 degrees and we had more than 40 days with temperatures above 90 degrees and hardly any rainfall. Heat is by far the biggest killer when it comes to natural disasters.
A lot of effort is being made to reduce the loss of life from all kinds of storms and especially heat related deaths. Many seniors live in our cities in high-rise apartments and when the power goes out, they are very susceptible to respiratory failure. Since the 1980s, the weather service issues excessive heat warnings, and a heat index that combines both heat and humidity is now part of summer forecasts. The heat index acts like the wind chill index of winter and warns folks of the danger from heat. Many communities now set up cooling centers and there is much more air conditioning than was available in the 80s.
A lot of thought is going to be needed going forward as to where we build our homes of the future. More than half of our population lives within one hour of a coastal area and are in harm蘑菇视频 way of hurricanes and floods. Los Angeles and San Francisco and St. Louis have millions of homes built on an earthquake fault line. Some Western cities get less than a few inches of rain per year.
Houston is now five times the size that it was a few decade ago. What was once grassland and a prairie is now malls, streets, roof tops and parking lots. These simply do not handle water very well. With our changing climate we are going to have to do a much better job of planning if we are to be prepared for the future.
Lastly, don鈥檛 forget that while your homeowners or renters policies do cover fire, tornadoes and windstorms, they do not cover flood or earthquakes. Flood insurance is available as a separate policy. While Pennsylvania is not in a high earthquake zone, we have had past events and some insurance carriers will add this coverage for a very nominal charge. You may be pleased to know that if you carry comprehensive insurance on your automobile, it will cover flood and storm damage.
Being ready for the next 鈥淏ig One鈥� or just the next small one is a matter of preparation.
How prepared are you?