When disaster strikes | Borneo Bulletin Online

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Aqilah Rahman

In 2021, the Emergency Event Database (EM-DAT) recorded 432 natural disasters worldwide, compared to 357 per year on average between 2001 and 2020. Overall, these accounted for 10,492 deaths which affected over 100 million people and caused approximately USD252.1 billion of economic losses according to the 2021 Disasters in Numbers report by the Center for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED).

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

In addition to floods being the most frequent disaster type, the report also highlighted the significant increase of its occurrences, up from an annual average of 163 occurrences recorded over the last two decades.

Among the countries affected was India which lost over 1,200 lives during its monsoon season, while the Henan flood in China resulted in over 350 deaths and the Nuristan floods in Afghanistan resulted in 260 deaths.

Storms, the second most frequent disaster type last year, were also above the 2001-2020 average of 102 entries per year. In December 2021, Typhoon Rai struck the Philippines, claiming at least 457 lives. In April, Tropical Cyclone Seroja 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 caused 96 deaths.

A family take their belongings after their home was flooded due to heavy rain in Antananarivo, Madagascar. FILE PHOTO: AP

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

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

In addition, Fukushima’s 7.1-magnitue earthquake in February ranks among the top 10 of the costliest disasters 2021, causing an economic loss of approximately USD7.7 billion.

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 is largely attributed 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.

The wildfire in Algeria recorded the highest number of victims with 90 deaths. At the end of 2021, the Marshall Fire event in Boulder County, Colorado, caused economic loss of up to USD3.3 billion, the ninth most severe disaster event in 2021 in terms of economic losses in EM-DAT.

Other disaster types 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 resulted in a deadly mass flow in Himalaya, India which significantly damaged the hydropower infrastructure. Approximately 234 were reported dead or missing, making it one of the top 10 deadliest events in 2021.

Meanwhile, the Cumbre Vieja volcano eruption on the Canary Islands was estimated to have caused an economic loss of USD1 billion, the costliest lava flow reported in EM-DAT in the last 20 years.

Globally, the number of deaths and number of people affected by natural disasters in 2021 were less than the 2001-2020 annual average. However, an economic loss of USD252.1 billion was recorded last year, up from the 2001-2020 annual average of USD153.8 billion.

This makes 2021 the fourth most damaging year recorded in EM-DAT over the last two decades. Hurricane Ida alone cost USD65 billion, ranked the sixth most damaging of the last 20 years.

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

In terms of economic loss, Americas took the biggest hit at 58.9 per cent followed by Europe (20.7 per cent) and Asia (18.9 per cent). By disaster type, the United States (US) recorded the biggest economic loss in 2021 due to Hurricane Ida which cost USD65 billion, followed by Germany which lost USD40 billion due to flood.

In addition to Hurricane Ida, the US also lost an additional USD30 billion due to the winter storm in February and USD9 billion due to drought.

Overall, five of the top 10 most economically costly disasters in 2021 occurred in the US and resulted in a total economic cost of USD112.5 billion.

For the past two decades, hurricanes and earthquakes have resulted in the highest economic costs, with the former often taking place in the US. The top 10 biggest economic losses between 2001 and 2020 were either due to earthquakes or hurricane except for the 2011 Thailand floods which ranked ninth and cost USD48 billion.

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