An intense outbreak of tempestuous weather hit the U.S. in an unusually early start to the severe weather season, reports Aon Benfield in its Global Catastrophe Recap for Feb. 2017. While winter weather caused disruption in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast early in the month, the real trouble was later on when severe thunderstorms hit other parts of the country.

According to the report by Aon's catastrophe model development team, the most notable of the activity was five outbreaks of severe weather that hit the U.S. during February, including 60 confirmed tornado touch-downs in the Midwest, Southeast and Mid-Atlantic. Illinois, Missouri, Indiana, Arkansas, Kentucky and Tennessee were among the hardest-hit states. Large hail and damaging winds afflicted homes, businesses vehicles and other structures, with total economic and insured losses from this one event minimally estimated in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

California once again saw significant precipitation and flooding throughout much of the state during the month. The most notable of these events prompted the evacuation of 200,000 residents as Lake Oroville reached full capacity and threatened to breach its dam. This resulted in the first use of the auxiliary spillway in the reservoir’s history. The cost to repair the spillways were listed at up to $200 million.

Subsequent storm systems brought additional rainfall that led to more flooding across California. At least eight people were killed and total damage costs were expected well into the hundreds of millions.

Associate Director and Meteorologist Claire Darbinyan said, "While the U.S. endured another active and costly month from severe thunderstorms, it was not the only region coping with major losses from the peril."

Across the globe

Windstorm Thomas became the costliest European windstorm of the year when it struck Western and Central Europe, killing three people. Preliminary insured loss estimates were above $105 million in both the U.K. and Germany.

A number of powerful thunderstorms swept across regions of New South Wales, Australia, including the Greater Sydney Metro Area, leading to widespread damage and disruption. The Insurance Council of Australia and local insurers reported that at least 48,000 claims had been filed with payouts of at least $250 million.

Other natural hazards which occurred during February include:

Major flood events in Peru, Chile, Zimbabwe, Indonesia and Australia.
Winter storms in Afghanistan and Pakistan which triggered avalanches that killed more than 200 people.
In Mozambique, Cyclone Dineo killed at least seven people and injured 101 others. More than 105,000 homes and 2,000 other buildings were damaged or destroyed while flooding devastated the local agricultural industry. Economic losses were listed at $17 million.
A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck the southern Philippines killing eight people and injuring hundreds more. Thousands of homes were damaged or destroyed as economic losses were listed at $14 million.

Special Reports /

Severe weather disrupts U.S. economy in February

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