Top 10 Costliest Atlantic Hurricanes

Posted by on July 5, 2013 in Hurricane Awareness, Uncategorized | Comments Off on Top 10 Costliest Atlantic Hurricanes

hurricane sandy satellite view- costliest hurricanes in atlantic

Hurricanes in the Atlantic ocean have a reputation for taking a financial toll on the eastern coast of the United States. Reports show that even lower category storms can have a huge economic impact on coastal cities. So just which hurricanes have been the most expensive?

It depends! Hurricane costs are merely estimates of a combination of certain monetary factors. Expenses may include damages to structures and property. Many totals include the actual losses which businesses face during the time-frame in which the hurricane strikes.

Most Expensive Hurricanes in the Atlantic

We have compiled a list of the costliest Atlantic hurricanes comprised of data from NOAA (National Oceanic and Atomospheric Administration). Factors include flood damage costs, destruction of property, and economic monetary losses. Data does not include inflation. Check out our top 10 costliest Atlantic hurricanes list:

  1. Hurricane Katrina– $108 billion in 2005, category 3
  2. Hurricane Sandy– $68 billion in 2012, category 3
  3. Hurricane Ike– $29.5 billion in 2008, category 2
  4. Hurricane Andrew– $26.5 billion in 1992, category 5
  5. Hurricane Wilma– $21 billion in 2005, category 3
  6. Hurricane Ivan -$18.8 billion in 2004, category 3
  7. Hurricane Irene– $16.6 billion in 2011, category 3
  8. Hurricane Charley– $15.1 billion in 2004, category 4
  9. Hurricane Rita– $12 billion in 2005, category 3
  10. Hurricane Gilbert– $10.2 billion in 1998, category 3

What Makes Hurricanes So Expensive?

Hurricanes pummel cities and can be powerful enough to tear down homes and buildings. Flooding, tearing off roofs, and toppling over buildings and signs are all extreme threats to cities during a hurricane. Destruction generally requires a wide range of repairs to homes, power lines, and roadways.

Besides the more obvious point that hurricanes cause damages that need to be repaired, these storms often have an affect on the economy of cities in their path. Hurricanes halt economic growth by damaging resources. This can heavily impact regions which produce gas and oil products, or crops. One professor at the University of North Texas, Bernard Weinstein indicates that if analysts take into consideration the disruption in gas production during Hurricane Katrina, costs would be almost $250 billion total! No matter how they are calculated, hurricanes have been great financial burdens throughout history.

 

Sources: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/nws-nhc-6.pdf