Damage From Irene Appears Less Than Feared, but Losses Estimated at $7 Billion

WASHINGTON — Insured damage from Irene will range between $2 billion and $3 billion, and the total losses probably will be about $7 billion, according to preliminary estimates by Kinetic Analysis Corp. a consulting firm.

Both figures are less than had been feared, a bit of reassuring news for a fragile economy.

Still, the long-term costs of Irene will likely grow as storm-ravaged areas deal with lost business, insurance claims, dislocated workers and transportation disruptions — costs that will take months to fully calculate .

The preliminary estimate from Kinetic Analysis, based in Silver Spring, Md., suggests that Irene will have caused far less insured damage than the $6 billion the industry paid out after Hurricane Isabel struck the East Coast in 2003.