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WELLINGTON, New Zealand — The cost of the deadly sequence of earthquakes in Christchurch has gone up and likely will top $17 billion.
New Zealand’s government today more than doubled its initial liability estimate of $2.6 billion to $6 billion. The rest of the cost will be borne by private insurers. The cost of the quakes equates to about 10 percent of the country’s annual economic output.
Christchurch has suffered more than 7,500 earthquakes and aftershocks since last September. The most significant quake, a magnitude-6.1 temblor, hit Feb. 22. It killed 181 people.
