Eastern Long Island took worst of Irene - study

Oct 17 (Reuters) - The eastern end of Long Island suffered the highest insured losses in the United States from late August’s Hurricane Irene, followed closely by a coastal county in North Carolina, financial data company Verisk Analytics said on Monday.Verisk said Suffolk County, the New York area that includes the exclusive Hamptons region, topped the list of 191 hurricane-affected counties nationwide with more than $200 million in insured property damage.Just behind Suffolk County and also with more than $200 million in damage was Dare County, North Carolina, which includes Outer Banks communities like Nags Head and Kitty Hawk.Three other counties had more than $150 million in damage, Verisk said, including western Long Island’s Nassau County, Monmouth County in New Jersey and Worcester County in Maryland.Irene was the first hurricane to make landfall in the United States in three years. Estimates of the total damage it caused have varied widely, ranging from $1.8 billion up to $7.1 billion.