Avengers destruction would cost RM490bil in damages

The Avengers assembled to put a stop to Loki’s evil plan to take over the world.

This includes going to war with a never-ending supply of shape-shifting Chitauri aliens in one of Hollywood’s favourite landmark to destroy, New York City.

And destroy they did.

The post epic battle destruction of Midtown Manhattan was estimated to cost the city between USD60bil (RM184bil) and USD70bil (RM215bil), while the economic and cleanup would amount to approximately USD90bil (RM276bil). And with loss of thousands of lives factored in, the overall price tag would be a whopping USD160bil (RM490bil).

To put things into perspective, the Sept 11 terrorist attacks cost USD83bil (RM254.5bil), Hurricane Katrina at USD90bil and last year’s tsunami in Japan amounted to USD122bil (RM374bil).

LA based entertainment publication The Hollywood Reporter engaged in the services of Kinetic Analysis Corp, one of the leading disaster-cost prediction and assessment firms in the nation, to provide a little fact into the fictitious demolition.

"The extensive damage to Grand Central Terminal could prove highly disruptive, depending on the subsurface damage to the subway system," KAC notes.

"Although such damage is unlikely, as the 9/11 events showed, collapsing buildings can cause significant damage to subsurface infrastructure such as gas, communications and electrical systems. Detailed site surveys will be required to assess the state of the subterranean infrastructure.

On the set: Straight from the streets of Manhattan. (bleedingcool.com)

"Most insurance policies have special provisions for acts of war, civil unrest or terrorism," KAC adds.

"Given the involvement of individuals considered deities in some cultures (Thor, Loki), there is even the potential to classify the event as an 'act of God,' though that designation would be subject to strenuous theological and legal debate."

Chuck Watson, one of the project managers from KAC, said he was actually surprised by a lower-than-expected total.

In an email he said, "Compared to the aliens in Independence Day, for example, these guys were amateurs. Of course, the Chitauri/Loki alliance were more interested in conquest and ruling whereas the ID aliens were just looking for lunch or something."

Source: Agencies