The tornadoes that ripped through sections of central Floridaearlier this month will cost insurers an estimated $100 million,according to the Insurance Services Office, Inc.

Gary Kerney, assistant vice president of Property ClaimsServices--a division of Jersey City, N.J.-based ISO--said todaythat insured losses from the Feb. 2 tornadoes that damaged fourcentral Florida counties would hit the $100 million mark.

In an interview with National Underwriter, he said the primarylosses were on the personal lines side--about 70 percent of thetotal. It appeared that commercial line losses were not asextensive as homeowners. It also appeared that many apartmentdwellers and manufactured (also known as mobile home) homeownersdid not have insurance.

He said this event "points again to the fact that these kinds oflosses are extremely difficult to estimate," said Mr. Kerney,accounting for the extended amount of time it took PCS to come upwith an estimate.

The killer tornadoes hit Lake, Seminole, Sumter and Volusiacounties, claiming 20 lives.

The National Weather Service believes three tornadoes toucheddown--one believed to be a F-3 tornado with winds from 158-to-206miles per hour. NWS estimated that the swath of tornadoes covered70 miles.

Besides killing 21, the storm ruined 1,544structures--completely destroying 434 and severely damaging456.

Two of the state's major insurers said they sufferedmultimillion dollar losses.

The largest personal lines insurer in the state, State Farm,estimated its losses would be around $25 million, while CitizensProperty Insurance Corp.--the state's carrier of lastresort--expected losses to exceed $5 million.

Weather catastrophe losses for insurers are continuing, notedMr. Kerney, with this past weekend's series of storms receiving acatastrophe designation from PCS. He said the designation coversthe states of Texas, Arkansas and Iowa. It is too early to give anyloss estimates, he added.