Boat U.S. - May 2008 - (Page 11) New Twist on Hurricane Losses An increase in economThe report demonic damage from hurricanes strates how population is not because storms are and property density getting any stronger — it’s effect the economic hurbecause more people and ricane damage by applydevelopment are moving ing the forces of Florida’s into hurricane-prone areas, 1926 Great Miami scientists at the National Hurricane to that city’s Oceanic and Atmospheric urban setting today. The Administration (NOAA) study estimated that have found. hurricane would cause The study, published in $140 to $157 billion Natural Hazards Review, in economic damage, Concentration of population and property also found that the ecoon our coasts has led to increased eco- compared to Hurricane nomic hurricane damage nomic losses from hurricanes. Katrina, the costliest hurin the United States has ricane of U.S. record at doubled every 10 to 15 years. $81 billion. “Unless action is taken to address the The authors say storms cause $10 bilgrowing concentration of people and proplion in damage each year and this figure is erty in coastal hurricane areas, the damage set to grow as population in coastal areas will increase by a great deal as more people continues to climb. The U.S. Census Bureau and infrastructure inhabit these coastal reports the number of Americans residing in locations,” says Chris Landsea, the report’s coastal counties reached 150 million, with co-author and operations officer at NOAA’s 53% of Americans living in a coastal county. National Hurricane Center in Miami. “Avoiding huge losses will require a “There is nothing in the U.S. hurricane change in the rate of population growth damage record that indicates global warmin coastal areas, major improvements in ing has caused a significant increase in construction standards or other mitigation destruction,” he says. actions,” the report says. Spoil Her she’ll LOVE it! with every order: FREE ink you don’t need accurate charts? Just wait until your electronics fail. Technology is not foolproof. That’s why serious boaters rely on multiple means of navigation, including paper charts. And they know only OceanGrafix offers fully updated charts – important insurance when the unexpected happens. OceanGrafix paper charts: - Get printed at the time you order - Are approved by NOAA and include their latest updates - Meet U.S. Coast Guard carriage requirements NOAA and BoatU.S. want you to boat safely! Try an up-to-date OceanGrafix paper chart through an exclusive BoatU.S. offer - only $15 (a $24.25 value) Go to: nauticalchartsonline.com and enter CODE BUS416 BUS611E Offer expires June 30, 2008. www.oceangrafix.com (877) 562-4278 11 Shown: Oh-So-Soft Pin Dot Pajamas BoatU.S. Magazine May 2008 http://www.pajamagram.com http://www.pajamagram.com http://www.nauticalchartsonline.com http://www.nauticalchartsonline.com
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