Insured losses from east coast earthquake expected to be less than $100 million
A magnitude 5.8 earthquake occurred in Virginia on August 23 and sent shocks throughout much of the Eastern United States and parts of Canada. Reports indicated that earthquake was felt as far away as Toronto (644 kilometres away) and Atlanta (692 kilometers distant).
U.S. government buildings, including the Pentagon and White House in Washington, D.C. were evacuated, though not much damage was reported. Catastrophe modeler EQECAT says insured losses from this earthquake are expected to be less than USD $100 million.
“A M5.8 earthquake in the central and eastern US does not produce an expectation of widespread catastrophic damages,” said EQECAT. “Most modern structures are expected to withstand the modest ground motions produced by this event. Older structures, especially older masonry structures, can have details and components that demonstrate a vulnerability to damage from this type of event; however, this type of damage is expected to be found scattered in isolated pockets of the area. Items stored on shelves or suspended from ceilings are also susceptible to damage from these types of events.”
However, EQECAT noted that had the earthquake been roughly one magnitude greater, the loss estimate in this region could be close to $2 billion, “more than a 20-fold increase in losses for a one magnitude increase in energy released.”
Did you feel the earthquake on Tuesday?
