A Brief Climatology of Extreme Weather and Climate Events in the U.S. and Around the World.

This report will examine weather-related disasters across the U.S. and the globe. During the past twenty years (1980-1999), the United States has sustained 44 weather-related disasters in which the total damages and costs associated with the event reached or exceeded $1 billion. The last twelve years (1988-1999) of the period produced 38 of these disasters, and the last eight years (1992-1999) produced 33--an average of over four per year, or about one per quarter. The west coast and the southeast have been most affected, although the midwest, southern plains, and northeast have been hit several times as well. This study will provide a brief review of each event, with dollar amounts presented both in actual/unadjusted figures and in real/adjusted (for inflation and wealth) terms. However, costs are not adjusted for increased population and industry in high-risk areas, such as along coastal regions, which partly accounts for increasing costs over time. The report will also summarize major weather-related global disasters. Additional information and analyses are available on the NCDC WWW site.