Wharton professors assess the impact of what is clearly the costliest natural disaster ever to strike the U.S.
Picking Up the Pieces from Katrina: What Lies Ahead - Knowledge@Wharton
This feature piece at Wharton's free "Knowledge @ Wharton" e-zine compares the impact of Katrina to that from Andrew and other disasters. Its authors suggest a $200 billion damage estimate, with still uncertain impact on the oil and gas industry.
Wharton professor Howard Kunreuther points out that private insurers will not be as hard hit as they were by Andrew. Insurance for flood is borne by the National Flood Insurance Program, which may outstrip its ability to pay until tax money is added. The mix of windstorm and flood damage in many instances will lead to "many lawsuits," according to Kunreuther.
Real estate professor Witold Rybczynski predicted that like most cities, New Orleans will rebuild due to "an inertia built into cities," that makes the investment more than the destruction. He points to the destruction of Warsaw, Poland during World War II and its reconstruction afterwards. Another professor cited the rebuilding of Woodland Hills, California after wildfires in 1991.
The authors also provide a perspective from a Madrid professor who was visiting Guatemala in 1998 when Hurricane Mitch hit Central America. 10,500 died and some 10,000 simply disappeared.
Posted by dougsimpson at September 8, 2005 05:03 AM