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Irene could be among 10 costliest U.S. disasters
Locals survey the damage caused by Tropical Storm Irene on Route 73 in St. Huberts, N.Y., Monday, Aug. 29, 2011. / AP
Early estimates suggest the damage wrought by Hurricane, and then Tropical Storm Irene upon the East Coast will cost the U.S. economy $7 billion, and the New York Times reports that may be a conservative estimate, making Irene one of the 10 costliest disasters in the nation's history.
The Times puts the price tag anywhere between $7 billion and $10 billion, and says the real cost may actually be higher than in previous natural disasters due to the fact that the nation's insurers will bear less of the burden.
Much of the damage from Irene was caused by devastating inland flooding - from ruined fields of crops in North Carolina, to swamped homes all the way up to Vermont, and insurance companies may swallow less than 40 percent of the cost to put things right again, analysts from Kinetic Analysis tell the Times.
Special Section: Hurricane Irene
Food airlifted to towns cut off by Irene
Watch: Dramatic Hurricane Irene videos
In past disasters, insurers have stumped up about 50 percent of the costs, according to Kinetic, but they say the fact that many insurance plans do not cover flood damage, and higher deductibles for coastal residents in recent years, mean much more of the money will have to come directly from Americans' pockets after Irene.
Wind damage is generally covered by insurance, but most of the havoc from Irene - which is now blamed for 49 deaths - was caused by the flood waters.
According to CBSNews.com's partner site MoneyWatch, hurricanes usually account for about half of the nation's annual insurance payouts.
This year, according to MoneyWatch, insurers have already paid out almost $25 billion thanks to natural disasters. Payouts normally amount to about $30 billion, for the whole year -- and we're less than half way through the Atlantic hurricane season.
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Are you on drugs??? Your logic makes no sense, who (singular US citizen) today will be forced to "coughed up the billions of dollars" for this?
It's YOUR ultra-moronic statement.
Your claim above, apparently. is that the government doesn't fund FEMA, but the "citizens do".
I simply asked you which citizens were going to pay for the Hurricane Irene damage, if not the federal government collectively acting on our behalf.
It's a question that you idiot Tea Baggers should ask as you seek to eliminate the federal government.
LOL here's a clue we have always picked up the tab or do you think government money comes from thin air?
And which US citizen coughed up the billions of dollars - BY HIMSELF - to pay the cost for Katrina? or Andrew?
ooh, quick run to your mailbox and see if your welfare check came today!
What does "FEMA disaster assistance" have to do with "welfare"?
You think that middle class working people who have lost everything in a natural disaster, don't deserve the right to live in America, because they are "freeloaders" somehow?
Or do you think like most conservatives, and think that we should be "nation building" places like iraq, while our own nation suffers?
..... and the ONLY one where the citizens of this nation have been forced to pick up the tab themselves because congress led by the republicans are being held hostage by the Tea Party.