More spending needed ahead of disasters: UN

The Straits Times via AFP: The earthquake and tsunami in Japan capped a series of tragic and costly global catastrophes which show that more money must be spent on risk reduction, a UN disaster official said on Tuesday.

'People actually lose lives less than they did 30 years ago because of better preparedness,' said Margareta Wahlstrom, the United Nations Special Representative for Disaster Risk Reduction. 'But the economic losses are just increasing every year because of the destruction.'

Japan's government has estimated that direct damage from last month's 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami could reach around US$300 billion (S$368 billion)….

SENDAI, Japan -- U.S. Air Force search and rescue personnel witness a house adrift off the coast of Northeastern Japan March 14. The HH-60G helicopter crew surveyed the damage stricken area as part of Japan's earthquake and tsunami recovery efforts.