When disaster strikes | Borneo Online Newsletter

Aqila Rahman |

In 2021, the Emergency Event Database (EM-DAT) recorded 432 natural disasters worldwide, compared to an average of 357 disasters annually between 2001 and 2020. Overall, these disasters accounted for 10,492 deaths affecting more than 100 million people and caused about $252.1 billion in economic losses according to the 2021 Disasters by Numbers report from the Center for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED).

Floods were the most frequent type of disaster in 2021, with 223 events recorded, followed by storms with 121 events recorded. Others were less frequent: earthquake (28), forest fires (19), drought (15), landslide (14), volcanic activity (9) and temperature extremes (3).

In addition to floods being the most frequent type of disaster, the report also highlighted the significant increase in their incidence, compared to the annual average of 163 events recorded over the past two decades.

Among the affected countries are India, which killed more than 1,200 people during the monsoon season, while Henan floods in China killed more than 350 people, and Nuristan floods in Afghanistan resulted in 260 deaths.

Storms, the second most frequent type of disaster last year, were also above the 2001-2020 average of 102 entries per year. In December 2021, Typhoon Ray hit the Philippines, killing at least 457 people. In April, Tropical Cyclone Ciruga passed through Indonesia and claimed 226 lives. Other storms include the North American winter in February, which killed at least 235 people, and Hurricane Ida, which killed 96 people.

A family takes their belongings after their home was flooded due to heavy rain in Antananarivo, Madagascar. File image: AP

In 2021, EM-DAT reported 28 earthquakes, up from the 2001-2020 annual average of 27.

Last year’s earthquakes resulted in fewer deaths and global economic losses than the past two decades on average due to the less dangerous nature of earthquakes. However, the August 7.2 Haiti earthquake was recorded as the deadliest EM-DAT disaster in 2021, causing 2,575 deaths.

In addition, the 7.1-magnitude Fukushima earthquake in February ranks among the top ten among the most costly disasters in 2021, causing an estimated economic loss of about 7.7 billion US dollars.

The number of wildfires recorded in EM-DAT last year was higher than the 2001-2020 average of 11 per year. According to the report, this was largely due to a series of events in the Mediterranean region during the summer period, which affected countries such as Algeria, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Macedonia, Tunisia and Turkey.

And forest fires in Algeria recorded the largest number of victims, with 90 deaths. At the end of 2021, the Marshall Fire Event in Boulder County, Colorado, caused an economic loss of US$3.3 billion, the ninth most serious disaster of 2021 in terms of economic losses for EM-DAT.

Other types of disasters such as volcanic activities, mass movements, and landslides were less frequent in 2021 and resulted in less economic damage. However, in April, a rock and ice avalanche triggered a deadly mass flow in the Himalayas, India, causing significant damage to hydropower infrastructure. Nearly 234 are reported dead or missing, making it one of the 10 deadliest events of 2021.

Meanwhile, the eruption of Cumbre Vieja in the Canary Islands was estimated to have caused an economic loss of US$1 billion, the most expensive lava flow reported in EM-DAT in the past 20 years.

Globally, the number of deaths and the number of people affected by natural disasters in 2021 was lower than the 2001-2020 annual average. However, economic losses of $252.1 billion were recorded last year, up from the 2001-2020 annual average of $153.8 billion.

This makes 2021 the fourth most devastating year for EM-DAT in the past two decades. Hurricane Ida alone cost US$65 billion and ranks as the sixth most devastating disaster of the past 20 years.

Overall, Asia recorded the highest number of disasters at 174, followed by the Americas (129), Africa (57), Europe (56) and the United States (43). In addition to being prone to disasters, Asia also had the highest fatality rate in 2021, accounting for 49 percent of the total number of deaths.

In terms of economic loss, the Americas took the biggest hit at 58.9 percent, followed by Europe (20.7 percent) and Asia (18.9 percent). By type of disaster, the United States recorded the largest economic loss in 2021 due to Hurricane Ida, which cost 65 billion dollars, followed by Germany, which lost 40 billion dollars due to floods.

In addition to Hurricane Ida, the United States also lost an additional $30 billion to the winter storm in February and $9 billion to a drought.

Overall, five of the 10 largest economic cost disasters in 2021 occurred in the United States and resulted in a total economic cost of US$112.5 billion.

Over the past two decades, hurricanes and earthquakes have caused high economic costs, the former often occurring in the United States. The 10 largest economic losses between 2001 and 2020 were either due to earthquakes or cyclones except for the 2011 Thailand floods which ranked ninth and cost US$48 billion.

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