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Member, Beacon International Group, Ltd.
MISSION BEACH, Australia—Tropical Cyclone Yasi could cause as much as $1.5 billion Australian ($1.49 billion) in insured damage, according to catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide Corp.
“Losses from Yasi may well exceed those from Cyclone Larry in 2006,” Vineet Jain, principal engineer at Boston-based AIR Worldwide, said in a Thursday statement.
He said Larry followed a similar path as Yasi, although it tracked slightly to the north and had less intense winds. Larry caused an estimated $540 million Australian ($536.2 million) in insured damage.
AIR estimated that insured losses from Yasi would range from $350 million Australian ($347.6 million) to $1.5 billion Australian.
Earlier in the week, EQECAT Inc. also said it expected insured losses from Cyclone Yasi to exceed those of Cyclone Larry.
Yasi made landfall just north of Mission Beach, Australia, on Thursday.
“In the aftermath of the most powerful cyclone to strike Australia’s east coast since 1918, many residents are expressing relief; while the storm was indeed damaging, its impact on heavily populated areas along the country’s northeast coast was less than expected,” AIR’s Mr. Jain said in the statement.
AIR said throughout Queensland and affected areas, newer commercial buildings sustained only minor structural damage, which illustrated the effectiveness of Australia’s building code even in the face of such a cyclone.
“Nonengineered residential structures performed less well, with some sustaining major structural damage, mostly to roofs,” AIR said.