Led by the devastation from Hurricane Sandy and the Midwest
drought, 2012 will likely be the second-costliest year for
weather and climate disasters on record, according to data
released today by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration. The costliest year for damages in the USA was
2005, when four hurricanes lashed the nation, including Katrina.
The USA has endured 11 separate weather and climate disasters so
far this year that led to damages of at least $1 billion, NOAA
reported today. This follows 2011, when an all-time record of 14
separate billion-dollar disasters were reported. Still, the
aggregate damage from the 2012 disasters will likely surpass the
$60 billion in 2011 for the total cost of weather and climate
disasters in the USA, says climatologist Adam Smith of the
National Climatic Data Center. He adds that the actual totals
from each of the 2012 events will not be tabulated until
mid-2013. The U.S. death toll this year from these 11 disasters
is 349, NOAA reports. The deadliest event