Annual Global Climate and Catastrophe Report: Impact ... - Aon

AnnuAl GlobAl Cli mAte And C AtAstroph e r e port
Multiple rounds of severe weather struck the United States between the 7th and the 28th. At least 295,000
insurance claims were filed over three separate events, totaling at least US$1.475 billion. The extended severe
weather was aided by a stationary frontal boundary across the Ohio valley, Great Lakes, central Plains and
eastern Rockies. At least 16 tornadoes touched down on the 7th, including five in the greater Denver, Colorado
region. The most damaging tornado struck the city of Aurora, where an EF1 tornado caused damage to
vehicles, homes, apartments, restaurants and the Southlands Mall. Additional severe weather was reported in
the Plains and the Midwest. Near Wichita, Kansas, a strong microburst damaged a six-block area of duplexes
and homes. On the 8th, multiple tornadoes touched down east of St. Louis, Missouri near O’Fallon, Illinois
and Du quoin, Illinois. The EF2 tornado near O’Fallon damaged at least 140 buildings, while the EF1 tornado
in Du quoin injured two people, destroyed two homes and damaged at least 34 others. Additional tornadoes
touched down in southern Wisconsin near Mukwonago and Racine. By the 9th, major metropolitan areas
including Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, D.C. reported high winds and hail. An EF0 tornado touched
down in Baltimore County, Maryland. A new area of low pressure triggered numerous severe thunderstorms
that spawned at least eight tornadoes in Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Texas and Colorado.
On the 10th, at least two tornadoes touched down in northern Colorado, damaging crops in Weld County.
On the 11th, strong thunderstorms affected North Texas and knocked out electricity to 260,000 homes.
Dime-sized hail and winds gusting to 70 mph (110 kph) caused chimney and roof damage in the Dallas-Fort
Worth suburbs. A separate storm system brought severe thunderstorms from the Nebraska panhandle into
the Great Lakes on the 11th. On the 12th, a powerful thunderstorm line developed across eastern sections
of Kansas and Oklahoma, causing straight-line wind damage, large hail and tornadoes as it moved southeast
through Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama. Desoto County, Mississippi reported an EF2 tornado
that damaged or destroyed at least 693 homes, schools and churches. At least five tornadoes touched down
near Dallas, Texas. On the 13th, more tornadoes developed in the Texas Panhandle and Colorado. Another
thunderstorm line developed in Arkansas and raced southeastward through southwest Tennessee, northern
Mississippi and Alabama on the 14th. Significant tree damage was reported throughout Alabama as winds
gusted to 70 mph (110 kph). Hundreds of homes reported minor roof damage. A separate storm system in
the eastern Rockies and central Plains brought softball-size hail to parts of Texas and Wyoming. On the 15th,
a storm system developed in the Plains and the eastern Rockies, causing roof damage to hundreds of homes.
Storm damage was also reported in the Dakotas, Colorado, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee,
Missouri, Mississippi and Alabama. In the greater Denver region, at least six tornadoes were reported. A
separate storm system brought hail and gusty winds to parts of Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New york,
New Jersey, Massachusetts and New Hampshire on the 15th. Numerous thunderstorms caused large hail, high
winds and a few tornadoes across the Plains, Midwest and into the southern Appalachians on the 17th.
A tornado was reported in Waseca and Steele counties in southeast Minnesota, while an EF2 tornado in Austin,
Minnesota caused a ten-mile (16-kilometer) damage path. Wind damage occurred on the 18th and 19th in
Indiana, Kentucky, eastern Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. Two tornadoes were reported in
North and South Dakota, while significant tree damage was caused by storms that moved through southern
Wisconsin. On the 20th, nine tornadoes touched down across central and southeast Kansas. Widespread
damage and power outages were reported, particularly in McPherson County, where several outbuildings
and structures were destroyed. On the 21st, multiple tornadoes occurred across central Iowa and southern
Minnesota. Damage was reported in Grundy, Hamilton and Hardin counties in Iowa and in Faribault County,
Minnesota. On the 24th, nearly a dozen tornadoes touched down across the Dakotas. On the 25th, a strong
cluster of storms rolled through Detroit, Michigan, causing at least 100,000 homes to lose power. Hail and
high winds occurred in Ohio, Pennsylvania and New york into the Mid-Atlantic States from the 25th through
the 28th.
A hailstorm killed at least 15 people and left at least 181 injured in China on the 14th. The severe storms swept
across east China’s Anhui Province, bringing winds gusting to 100 kph (62 mph), flash flooding and hail. At
least 9,690 homes were destroyed. The storms also damaged 24,300 hectares (60,000 acres) of crops. Total
economic losses were estimated at US$66 million.
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