NU Online News Service, Jan. 6, 3:51 p.m. EST

Earthquakes in 2010 caused insured losses exceeding $10 billion, and the industry as well as governments around the world must take action to prepare for future quakes, according to a new report from catastrophe modeler EQECAT.

Economic losses from the 2010 quakes are estimated at $40 billion, EQECAT said.

The February 2010 Chile earthquake--a magnitude 8.8 quake--was the costliest for the year, causing insured losses of $8 billion and economic losses of $30 billion, EQECAT said in the report, "Earthquakes in Review: A Foundation for Understanding Risk," prepared by Kate Stillwell. The January quake in Haiti caused the greatest loss of lives since a magnitude 7.5 earthquake in 1976 in Tangshan, China.

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