Petteri Taalas, Secretary-General, World Meteorological...
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New Zealand enacts a new law to modernise natural hazard insurance
The Bill’s name - Natural Hazards Insurance Bill - recognises the...
China weighs exit from ‘zero COVID’ and the risks involved
Studies of Chinese vaccines suggest they offer significantly less...
World warned: Change now or endanger food and climate
But in a stark warning to those who may hope that vast reforestation and biofuel schemes alone can offset mankind’s environmental damage, the report cautioned that these mega-projects could endanger food security, underlining that reducing emissions will be central to averting disaster
ILS market slow to return to normal
market declined year-on-year in the second quarter of 2019, with just below $1.7 billion of non-life ILS capacity issued through 11 cat bonds, down from $6.2 billion and $4.0 billion in Q2 2017 and 2018 respectively. That made the recent quarter the second-lowest second-quarter for issuance by volume in the past eight years, except for 2016.
Artificial Intelligence helps to contain wildfires, predict wild weather
The equipment includes optical and thermal cameras, as well as spectrometric systems that identify the chemical makeup of substances. By linking them to artificial intelligence, a small Portugal-based company working with IBM Corp. believes it can help tame the often unpredictable affects of climate change. Others are using AI to predict dangerous hail storms, and studying how it can help find victims in bad weather.
Why year-long Ebola outbreak hasn’t triggered payout from pandemic insurance
The Pandemic Emergency Financing (PEF), which includes funding for an Ebola outbreak, comprises $95 million of bonds and $55 million of insurance. It would also provide financing in event of pandemics caused by other infectious diseases such as Marburg, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever or Lassa fever.
Lok Sabha passes Bill to set up National Committee on Dam Safety to prevent dam failures
Observing that safety of dam is extremely important as it concerns lives of people, property and flora and fauna, the Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said “there is a need to have a common protocol for safety of dams in the country.”
India has received satellite data on flood-hit regions from 8 nations: MEA
Whenever there is a natural disaster, the National Remote Sensing Center (NRSC) and member space agencies of 32 other countries which are a part of the International Charter Space and Major Disasters can activate the platform, the ministry said
Natural disasters cause a $73bn global economic loss,Insurance payouts totalled around $20bn in 1H 2019
According to the report, there were an estimated 163 natural disaster events in 1H 2019, which was below the 18- average of 180 and the median of 182. There were at least 17 separate billion-dollar economic events in 1H 2019 – led by the United States and Asia Pacific (APAC) with six events each; Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) with four events, and the Americas with one event.
7.3 magnitude earthquake rattles Indonesia’s Malaku Island
There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage to the property as a result of the quake. No Tsunami warning has been issued.
Indonesia is highly susceptible to earthquakes and tsunamis as it lies in the highly seismic ‘Ring of Fire’, an area in the basin of the Pacific Ocean.
Record-setting heatwave and costly severe weather sweep across Europe in June
Michal Lorinc, Catastrophe Analyst within Aon’s Impact Forecasting team, said: “An active start to summer in the Northern Hemisphere featured many large-scale weather events including severe thunderstorms, flooding, extreme heatwaves, and drought. Europe was at the center of many of these perils as record temperatures engulfed parts of France, and large hail and damaging winds led to more than USD730 million in insured costs in Germany alone. Impact Forecasting currently has a fully probabilistic hail model available for several European countries to help clients better understand the growing risks associated with hail to property exposure.”
Massive earthquake hits California, towns survey damage amid 1700 aftershocks
There had been about 1,700 aftershocks since the Thursday quake, which was a bit higher than average, said Zachary Ross of the California Institute of Technology.
“An event of this size is going to keep producing aftershocks for years but the rates are going to decay with time,” Ross said.