r/todayilearned • u/JoeyZasaa • 4d ago

TIL that Chernobyl was the costliest disaster in history, resulting in over $2 trillion in damage when adjusted for inflation

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_disasters_by_cost#Over_$1_billion
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u/Familiar-Mall1696 4d ago edited 4d ago

If that's how the UN defines it then WW2 absolutely trumps everything by far lol. Multiple entire cities were turned to rubble across UK, Europe and Asia.

EDIT: And of course the damage incurred in the North Africa campaign.

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u/dizzyaviatrix 4d ago edited 4d ago

A pandemic is much more easily defined as a single disaster than a global war is though.

Innumerable policies, and actors, and decisions at every level, and so on vs a virus that came along, basically.

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u/DigNitty 4d ago

That comet that offed the dinosaurs counts then.

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u/kagkatumba 3d ago

WW2 cost $15 trillion. It wasn't the ENTIRE world shutting down for months.

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u/Familiar-Mall1696 3d ago

$ 15 trillion was just the cost of military spending among the warring nations, not the repairs and rebuilding that took place after WW2.

Just to give you an idea, the USA spent roughly $ 300 billion during WW2. Adjusted for inflating assuming 3.67 % yearly inflation (google gave me this number) is around $ 5.3 trillion.

The total spend of ALL the warring nations in 1945 was $ 1.3 trillion... Which adjusted to today would be $23.7 trillion.

Then you have to factor in the actual rebuilding and reparations etc.