RECORD SETTING

Haiti Quake Caused $13.2B in Damage

Most destructive natural disaster ever.

The January 12 earthquake that ravaged Haiti was the most destructive natural disaster to ever hit a single country, according to a new study by the Inter-American Development Bank. The damage is estimated to cost $13.2 billion, and between 200,000 and 250,000 people were killed or are still missing. By comparison, the tsunami that rocked Indonesia in 2004 claimed as many lives, but that country’s population is several times that of Haiti’s. And the effects of the quake will be long lasting: In 10 years, Haiti’s economic output is expected to be 30 percent less than it would have been if the disaster hadn’t happened.