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February 17, 2010

Study: Haiti Damage Could Top $13.2B
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In Haiti, a new study says the damage from last month’s earthquake is
worse than after the 2004 Asian tsunami. The Inter-American Development
Bank says the damage could cost anywhere between $7.2 billion to $13.2
billion, compared to initial estimates of around $5 billion. Study
co-author Andrew Powell said the earthquake could be the most
destructive natural disaster in modern history.

Andrew Powell: “In relation to Haiti’s size, its population or its
economic income, it’s really a terrible tragedy, one of the worst events
that the world has seen for a country proportionate to the country’s
size. And so, it’s really a devastating impact that the earthquake has
had. We may well be talking of anything up to $13 or $14 billion of
damages, and, of course, reconstruction needs is somewhat different to
damages.”



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