Irene losses already up to $1.1 bln, more to come

NEW YORK, (Reuters) – Hurricane Irene caused as much  as $1.1 billion in insured losses in the Caribbean, catastrophe  modeling company AIR Worldwide said today, with more  expected to come as the storm heads for the U.S. Northeast.
Yet in a sign of the confusion sure to plague insurers in  days to come, rival catastrophe modelers Eqecat said late on  Friday losses in the region were likely no more than $600  million.
While no one knows yet precisely where Irene will strike or  how strong it will be at the time, it seemed certain as of  Friday that Philadelphia, the New Jersey shore, New York City,  Long Island and broad swaths of Connecticut, Rhode Island and  Massachusetts were all going to be hit.
The insured losses for the Caribbean will range from $500  million to $1.1 billion, mostly from the Bahamas, said AIR, one  of the three companies the insurance industry relies on to  model the impact of both natural and man-made disasters.
AIR had warned Irene was likely to do more damage to the  islands than 1999’s Floyd, the last hurricane to strike them in  such a direct way.
But Eqecat said its own models suggested losses of $300  million to $600 million. That the two would differ in their  estimate is not unusual. However, it also serves as a reminder  of how difficult it can be to assess storm damage in the days  and even weeks after the fact.
The next question is what Irene will do to the U.S. East  Coast, with some estimates putting more than $4 trillion of  insured coastal property in its path. The losses, by some  accounts, could be enormous.