This week, the Croatian town of Stari Grad on the island of Hvar experienced a meteotsunami. This is a rare meteorological phenomenon that caused the sea to rise rapidly, flooding the waterfront, nearby buildings and moored boats before retreating within minutes. Local emergency services spent hours pumping water from affected properties and responding to the damage.
Unlike seismic tsunamis, which are triggered by underwater earthquakes, meteotsunamis are caused by rapid atmospheric pressure disturbances, typically associated with fast-moving storm systems. Under the right conditions, these pressure waves can resonate with the sea surface and become amplified by local coastal and bay geometry, producing tsunami-like waves despite the absence of seismic activity.
Although meteotsunamis are relatively uncommon, they are a recognised hazard in several parts of the world, including the Adriatic Sea, where they have been documented for decades.
Looking beyond familiar hazards
Events such as the one on Hvar demonstrate why insurers increasingly need to consider a broad spectrum of physical hazards when assessing risk.
Property portfolios located in coastal areas may face exposure not only to river flooding or severe storms, but also to coastal flooding, storm surge, sea-level rise and, in certain locations, less frequent hazards such as meteotsunamis.
While a single event does not indicate a long-term trend, it illustrates an important reality: rare hazards can still produce significant financial losses when they affect densely developed coastal communities.
From historical records to forward-looking risk assessment
Traditional risk assessment has often relied heavily on historical events. Today, insurers and financial institutions increasingly complement historical data with forward-looking climate intelligence to better understand how physical hazards may affect assets over their lifetime.
This includes evaluating:
- exposure at the individual asset level;
- multiple physical hazards rather than a single peril;
- future climate scenarios alongside historical observations; and
- portfolio-wide concentrations of risk.
Supporting better risk decisions
At Climatig, we provide high-resolution physical climate risk analytics that help insurers, banks and asset managers better understand asset and portfolio exposure.
Our platform combines climate projections, hazard modelling and geospatial analytics to support underwriting, investment decision-making and long-term resilience planning across multiple physical climate hazards.
As recent events on Hvar demonstrate, effective risk management requires understanding both common and less frequent hazards. Comprehensive climate intelligence enables organizations to make more informed decisions before losses occur.
Sources
- DNEVNIK.hr. Meteocunami na Hvaru.
https://dnevnik.hr/vijesti/hrvatska/meteocunami-na-hvaru—991689.html - UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission. Meteotsunamis.
https://www.ioc-unesco.org - Vilibić, I., et al. Research on meteotsunamis in the Adriatic Sea and atmospheric resonance mechanisms.