WASHINGTON (dpa) – The global economic losses from natural catastrophes and man-made disasters equaled $222 billion in 2010, more than triple the $63 billion lost in 2009, according to reinsurance company Swiss Re.

The worldwide insurance industry spent $36 billion on disasters this year, an increase of 34 per cent from 2009. The death toll was the highest since 1976 - an estimated 260,000 people died in the disasters of 2010, compared to 15,000 in 2009, Swiss Re said.

The bulk of the fatalities occurred in the Haitian earthquake in January, in which more than 222,000 people were killed.

On top of that, 15,000 people died in Russia's heat wave, while the summer floods in China and Pakistan led to 6,225 deaths, the company said.

In February, an 8.8-magnitude earthquake killed 800 people in Chile. A powerful 7.1-magnitude earthquake killed 3,000 people and left 100,000 homeless in the Yushu area of China's Qinghai province in April. More than 500 people died in October after a powerful 7.7- magnitude earthquake triggered a tsunami in the Mentawai Islands off the western coast of Sumatra, Indonesia.

In November, Mount Merapi on Java island erupted, killing hundreds.

The humanitarian catastrophes revealed wide differences in how developed insurance systems are in affected countries, and how important insurance is in coping with the financial consequences of disaster, according to Swiss Re.