Since 27 February, parts of southwestern Asia, including Pakistan, south-eastern Iran and Afghanistan, have experienced heavy precipitation that resulted in casualties and material damage, according to Aon in the 8 March edition of its "Weekly Cat Report".
As of 6 March, local disaster authorities have reported at least 84 deaths, dozens of injured people and hundreds of destroyed or damaged houses, along with notable agricultural losses across the affected countries.
Meteorological Recap
Heavy precipitation up to 150 mm / 5.9 inches was observed in southeastern Iran, eastern Afghanistan, and central northern Pakistan during the period between 27 February and 4 March. Torrential rainfall triggered severe floods, and exposed high-elevated locations received significant amounts of snow. Weekly precipitation totals were well above long-term averages for this time of the year.
Notable losses due to recent flooding were reported also in south-eastern Iran. Hundreds of thousands of people were affected across Iran’s Sistan and Baluchistan provinces, particularly in the cities of Dashtiari, Qasrqand, Nikshahr and Chabahar. Widespread flooding resulted in material damage to local infrastructure and to more than 500 houses. Agricultural losses to more than 18,000 hectares of land were also incurred. No fewer than 39 people lost their lives and over 30 others were injured across different provinces in Afghanistan as the country battles heavy snowfall and rainfall.
Cities of Kandahar, Helmand, Sar-e-Pol, Badakshan, Balkh, Jawzjan, Badghis, Faryab, Herat, Ghazni, Daykundi and Ghor were among the hardest hit. Media reported more than 630 completely or partially destroyed homes and notable agricultural losses, including about 14,000 killed livestock.
Financial Loss
Due to a lack of reliable estimates from the affected areas, it remains too early to determine the total economic impact of this wintry and rainy episode on the region, the report says.
Source: asiainsurancereview.com