2016 broke record for insurable damage in Canada
The year 2016 will go down in infamy for a number of reasons. Every year has its share of horrible things happen, but in-the-moment hatred of 2016 became a sort of collective phenomenon unto itself. So it should come as no surprise to anyone that 2016 broke the record for insurable damage in Canada thanks to a horrific mixture of severe weather incidents and natural catastrophes. It is estimated that the insurable damages total just over $4.9 billion, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC).
Any discussion of why 2016 wreaked so much havoc in damages begins with the Fort McMurray wildfires. In early May, the energy-based urban service area and its thousands of residents were hit by an unprecdently bad wave of fires and were forced to commence a massive evacuation. This tragic occurence has reportedly been responsible for $3.7 billion in damages, which alone would have easily surpassed the previous high for insurable damage during a year of $3.2 billion in 2013. That figure was calculated by Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc., a Toronto-based company that analyzes the impact of natural catastrophes.
Other events that contributed greatly to 2016's record-breaking total include the severe flooding that took place in Atlantic Canada and Windsor this past fall, various prairie storms that took place over the course of the year, and hailing in Moose Jaw in July. IBC President Don Forgeron noted that flooding especially has been one of the common occurences that has greatly driven up the costs of insured damages in recent years, and has recommended that a National Flood Program be implemented.
Since the 1990's, federal disaster spending has gone from an average of close to $100 million to well beyond the $1 billion mark.