Natural Disasters

A Tale of Two Cities What do Charles Dickens and rain barrels have in common? Nothing, until just recently, when IBC Chair Michael J. Donoghue, Allstate President and CEO, conjured both during a visual feast of a luncheon address at the National Insurance Conference of Canada, on October 2, 2008. Entitled “Tale of Two Cities”, the presentation highlighted London, England and London, Ontario as two cities at the forefront of adaptation to climate change. Donoghue stressed the industry’s important role in adaptation, and demonstrated how the wide-spread use of rain barrels by homeowners could significantly reduce the burden on Canada’s aging and overwhelmed sewer systems. Click here to watch this presentation.

It is no secret that the frequency and impact of natural disasters are on the rise worldwide. Earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunamis, forest fires, tornados, ice storms and severe rain storms are happening more often than ever before, and costing us more dearly.

Canada is not immune to this trend. Many of us remember the devastation of Hurricane Juan, which hit Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island in 2003, and the sheer horror of the forest fires that swept across British Columbia the following summer. In 2005, Toronto and the surrounding area were hit with a severe rainstorm and tornadoes that led to the second-largest insurance payout in Canada’s history. The largest Canadian disaster was the ice storm of 1998.

Through all these disasters, Canada’s home, car and business insurers have been there to help Canadians get back on their feet. They have also been leading efforts to help lessen the impact of disasters on people’s lives. Through their involvement with research organizations such as the , their work in helping to raise public awareness and their advocacy of a national Natural Disaster Reduction Plan, insurers are doing their part to protect Canadians from the worst that nature can throw our way.