In 2023, there was a total of 398 natural disasters events recorded worldwide, down from 398 recorded a year earlier. The Europe, Middle East and Africa region experienced the highest number of natural disasters that year. Deaths and costs of natural disasters Natural disasters affect almost every part of the world. In February 2023, Turkey and Syria were hit by earthquakes that resulted in the highest number of deaths due to natural disaster events that year. In terms of economic damage, Hurricane Katrina remains one of the most expensive natural disasters in the world, topped only by the earthquake/tsunami which hit Japan in 2011. Climate change and natural disasters Climate change has influenced the prevalence of natural disasters. Global warming can increase the risk of extreme weather, resulting in higher risk of droughts and stronger storms, such as tropical cyclones. For instance, higher levels of water vapor in the atmosphere give storms the power to emerge. Furthermore, the heat in the atmosphere and high ocean surface temperatures lead to increased wind speeds, which characterize tropical storms. Areas that are usually unaffected by the sea are becoming more vulnerable due to rising sea levels as waves and currents become stronger.

In 2023, there was a global protection gap of 262 U.S. dollars for natural disasters worldwide. The estimated economic loss of natural disasters worldwide was 380 billion U.S. dollars, while the estimated insured loss amounted to 118 billion U.S. dollars.Where did the most costly natural disaster occur?Natural disasters are extreme, sudden catastrophes that are caused by natural processes by the earth. Different types of natural disasters include floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, and tsunamis. There are many consequences that occur as a result of natural disasters, which include death, economic and infrastructural damage, and public health issues. The 2011 earthquake and tsunami that happened in Japan caused the most economic damage worldwide in the past four decades. Most costly disasters for insurersThe impact of natural disasters on insurance companies varies depends on the prevalence of insurance coverage in the affected region. Generally, losses from natural disasters that occur in wealthy countries such as the United States include a greater percentage of insured losses than disasters that occur in lower income countries. 2017 remains the worst year for insured property losses in the United States due to several major hurricanes in the U.S. and the Caribbean. Domestically, Hurricane Katrina was the most expensive natural disaster of all time.

In 2024, there were roughly 18,100 reported fatalities caused by natural disaster events worldwide. This was well below the 21st-century average and significantly lower than the fatalities recorded in 2023, which were driven by the earthquakes that hit Turkey and Syria on February and became the deadliest catastrophes in 2023, with nearly 60,000 reported deaths. Economic losses due to natural disasters The economic losses due to natural disaster events worldwide amounted to about 368 billion U.S. dollars in 2024. Although figures in recent years have remained mostly stable, 2011 remains the costliest year to date. Among the different types of natural disaster events, tropical cyclones caused the largest economic losses across the globe in 2024. What does a natural disaster cost? Hurricane Katrina has been one of the costliest disasters in the world, costing the insurance industry some 102 billion U.S. dollars. The resilience of societies against catastrophes have been boosted by insurance industry payouts. Nevertheless, insurance payouts are primarily garnered by industrialized countries. In emerging and developing regions, disaster insurance coverage is still limited, despite the need for improved risk management and resilience as a method to mitigate the impact of disasters and to promote sustainable growth.

There were a total of 257 fatalities reported due to heat waves, wildfires, and drought in the United States in 2023. In total, there were about 430 fatalities due to severe natural disasters in the United States that year.

In 2023, the most common natural disaster type in the world were floods, with 164 events reported that year. Storms were the type of natural disasters with the second highest occurrence, with 139 events.

In 2023, the United States experienced 25 natural disasters, which made it the most natural catastrophe-prone country in the world that year. India and China came second on that list with 17 natural disasters occurring in the same year. Floods was the most common type of natural disaster in 2023. Types of natural disasters There are many different types of natural disasters that occur worldwide, including earthquakes, droughts, storms, floods, volcanic activity, extreme temperatures, landslides, and wild fires. Overall, there were 398 natural disasters registered all over the world in 2023. Costs of natural disasters Due to their destructive nature, natural disasters take a severe toll on populations and countries. Storms and floods, which tend to occur most regularly, have the biggest economic impact in the countries that they occur. In 2023, storms caused damages estimated at more than 100 billion U.S. dollars. Meanwhile, the number of deaths due to natural disasters neared 100,000 that year. The earthquake in Turkey in February had the highest death toll, with more than 50,000 fatalities. Scientists predict that some natural disasters such as storms, floods, landslides, and wildfires will be more frequent and more intense in the future, creating both human and financial losses.

In 2023, there was a total of 89 severe natural disasters United States. In that year, approximately 60 percent of the catastrophes were severe convective storms. Furthermore, around 12 percent of the major disasters in the U.S. in 2023 were caused by winter storms.

In 2024, the economic losses due to natural disasters worldwide amounted to about 368 billion U.S. dollars. Natural disasters occur as a result of natural processes on Earth. Many different types of natural disasters can occur, including floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, and tsunamis. Natural disasters in 2024 Tropical cyclones generated the highest amount of economic losses in 2024 with 145 billion U.S. dollars worldwide. Hurricanes Helene and Milton were the most destructive events worldwide that year with over a hundred billion U.S. dollars in economic losses. Flooding events ranked second in the costliest events in 2024, with flooding in Valencia, Spain, and South and Central China being the worst examples. Asia hardest hit by natural disasters A highly destructive force, Asia is one of the most susceptible regions to natural disasters. The repercussions of natural disasters are not only physical, but also economic. Costs may be high – depending on the severity – as areas affected by natural disasters might need to be rebuilt. Lower income countries are more likely to be affected by natural disasters for a multitude of reasons, including a lack of developed infrastructure, inadequate housing, and lack of back-resources.

The earthquakes in Turkey and Syria in February incurred an economic loss of about 92.4 billion U.S. dollars, the most of any natural disaster event in 2023. Four of the ten most expensive catastrophes in that year were storms. Weather, climate, water related disaster The disasters that caused mortality in large numbers include droughts, storms, floods, and extreme temperatures. Hurricanes alone generated 35 percent of the total economic losses among the leading disasters over these 50 years. The global cost of natural disaster losses was primarily financial losses. Low-income countries are more affected by natural disasters when compared to the richer countries in the world. American Hurricanes Floods were the most common weather-related disasters recorded, yet storms had the highest human and economic losses. As the most common cause of damage, storms are the only disaster for which the attribution component grows. As of 2023, Hurricane Katrina was by far the most destructive hurricane in the United States. Officials confirmed more than 1,800 deaths, estimated damages of about 200 billion U.S. dollars, the destruction of approximately 350,000 homes, and displaced almost a million individuals.

The statistic shows the leading causes of deaths due to tropical cyclones in the United States from 1963 to 2012. Total 8 percent of victims died because of wind effects during tropical cyclones.

From 1950 to 2023, the cyclone Bhola that hit Bangladesh in 1970 was the deadliest natural disaster in the world. The exact death toll is impossible to calculate, but it is estimated that over 300,000 lives were lost as a result of the cyclone. The Tangshan earthquake in China in 1976 is estimated to have caused the second highest number of fatalities. The Haiti earthquake The fifth deadliest natural disaster during this period was the earthquake in Haiti in 2010. However, death tolls vary between 100,000 and 316,000, meaning that some estimates makes it the deadliest natural disaster in the world since 1950, and the deadliest earthquake since 1900. Sixty percent of the country’s hospitals and eighty percent of the country’s schools were destroyed. It was the worst earthquake to hit the Caribbean in 200 years, with a magnitude of 7.0 at its epicenter only 25 kilometers away from Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince. Poor construction practices were to blame for many of the deaths; Haiti’s buildings were not earthquake resistant and were not built according to building code due to a lack of licensed building professionals. High population density was also to blame for the high number of fatalities. One fourth of the country’s inhabitants lived in the Port-au-Prince area, meaning half of the country’s population was directly affected by the earthquake. Increasing extreme weather As global warming continues to accelerate climate change, it is estimated that natural catastrophes such as cyclones, rainfalls, landslides, and heat waves will intensify in the coming years and decades. For instance, the economic losses caused by natural disasters worldwide increased since 2015. Moreover, it is expected that countries in the Global South will be affected the most by climate change in the coming years, and many of these are already feeling the impact of climate change.

This statistic shows the number of earthquakes in the United States from 2000 to 2012. 2,342 earthquakes were recorded in the United States in the year 2000.

Extreme weather and climate disaster events caused a total of 92.9 billion U.S. dollars in damages across the United States in 2023. This was some 86 billion U.S. dollars less than the previous year. In total, there were 28 separate billion-dollar extreme weather and climate events in the United States in 2023. These included severe storms, wildfires, tropical cyclones, flooding, and drought.

The earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Japan in 2011 was the costliest natural disaster since 1900, with losses reaching 235 billion U.S. dollars. The tsunami hit the nuclear plant at Fukushima, causing a nuclear disaster in the area. Hurricane Katrina, which hit the Gulf Coast of the United States in 2005, and Hurricane Harvey, which hit the North American country in 2017, tied with the second largest economic losses in the period, each with 125 billion U.S. dollars.

According to a 2024 study, the Philippines was the country with the highest natural disaster risk in the world. The Pacific archipelago was given a disaster risk index (WRI) of 46.91, followed by Indonesia, with a disaster risk index of 41.13. In contrast, Monaco and Andorra had the lowest natural disaster risk worldwide that year, with a WRI of 0.18 and 0.28 respectively. The WRI index is calculated by considering how exposed countries are to natural disasters together with how vulnerable they are to them. Natural disasters’ frequency Since the century began, natural disasters have become more frequent. Every single year since 2013 has recorded more than 400 events. In 2023, 398 disasters were reported worldwide, a 15 percent increase compared to 2000. Considering that climate-related events are more common than geophysical ones (earthquakes, volcanic eruptions), accounting for roughly 80 percent of all natural disasters in 2023, the general upward trend can be mostly associated with climate change and its impact on weather patterns and phenomena. The biggest natural disasters The earthquake and subsequent tsunami that hit Japan in March 2011 was the costliest natural disaster around the world since 1980, with losses reaching 210 billion U.S. dollars. The Kobe earthquake from 1995 and the Sichuan earthquake from 2000 also rank among the costliest disasters on the past decades. Apart from earthquakes, hurricanes also tend to leave a considerable economic impact where they hit. Seven out of the ten biggest natural catastrophes, based on economic losses, were hurricanes, with Katrina, which hit the coasts of the U.S. in 2005, being the costliest.

In 2024, the global economic loss caused by tropical cyclones amounted to 145 billion U.S. dollars, more than any other type of natural disaster that year. Flooding followed in second, at 84 billion U.S. dollars. That same year, the total economic loss from all natural disasters globally reached 368 billion U.S. dollars.

About 1.7 thousand natural disasters in Africa have been reported between 1970 and 2019. The majority of them were floods, which accounted for 60 percent of all reported natural disasters recorded over the time span. Africa is particularly vulnerable to climate change compared to other regions of the world. A large share of the population lives below the poverty line and its livelihood depends on activities extremely sensitive to climate changes and weather conditions.

Due to its geography and various climates, China is exposed to an array of natural disasters, including earthquakes, floods, forest fires, and typhoons. In 2024, around 856 people lost their lives due to natural disasters in China. In recent decades, China has experienced some of the most devastating natural calamities worldwide. The Sichuan earthquake in 2008 led to about 84 thousand deaths and a direct economic loss of more than 800 billion yuan. Geological disasters in China Geological disasters refer to hazards caused by movements and deformation of the earth's crust, such as such as earthquakes, tsunami, and landslides. The occurrence and frequency of geological disasters in China varies by location and time. The southwest mountainous land area and plateau region experienced a higher number of geological disasters compared to other regions. In 2013, the economic impact of geological disasters in China reached an unprecedented 10.88 billion yuan in direct damage due to severe droughts and earthquakes Government emergency management About one-third of Chinese believed that a major disaster could happen in their hometown. Therefore, the Chinese government shifted towards a proactive disaster risk management system. The Chinese government is leveraging new technologies, such as drones, to strengthen the early-warning systems and emergency response scheme.

The risk index for a tsunami occurring in Indonesia in mid-2023 was 9.7 out of a maximum of ten points. Indonesia lies on the Pacific "Ring of Fire” where volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, landslides, drought, and forest fires frequently happen. With at least 1.5 thousand natural disasters occurring in Indonesia every year, the archipelagic country has one of the highest natural disaster rates worldwide.

Epicentrum of natural disasters in Indonesia Two of the most catastrophic natural disasters in human history took place in this archipelagic nation: the Tambora eruption in 1815, the most powerful volcanic eruption to date; and the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004, which was the most catastrophic tsunami so far with a death toll of over 225 thousand across 14 countries. The islands of Sumatra and Java have the highest number of volcanoes in Indonesia and as these are mostly active, these islands are more prone to natural disasters such as tsunamis and earthquakes compared to other Indonesian islands.

Disaster management in Indonesia has not been fully optimized yet With a series of major natural disasters in 2018, Indonesia’s disaster risk management budget tripled from 2017 to 2018. The budget kept increasing in the following years, especially for 2020, with the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, despite the prevalence and high frequency of natural hazards, there is still a strong and compelling need to improve and prioritize disaster management in the country. According to the Indonesian National Agency for Disaster Countermeasure's data in 2022, the number of killed or missing people due to natural disasters in Indonesia showed a constant increase compared to the past five years.

In 2023, a drought in Indonesia was the natural disaster with the highest number of people affected, with an estimated 19 million victims. A high number of people were also affected by the earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria in February that year, with 18 million victims across both countries.