Recent hurricanes have caused more than $200 billion in damage

HURRICANE BERIL – 2024

Hurricane Beryl was the first of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Exceptionally warm ocean temperatures caused it to quickly strengthen into a Category 5 storm in early July. Winds peaked at 165 mph (270 km/h) before weakening to a still-destructive Category 4.

When Hurricane Beryl hit Texas, it was downgraded to a Category 1 storm. Beryl was blamed for at least 36 deaths. The storm caused an estimated $28 billion to $32 billion in damage, according to AccuWeather’s preliminary estimates.

HURRICANE IDALIA – 2023

Hurricane Idalia slammed into Florida on August 30, 2023, with winds of 125 mph (201 km/h) that snapped trees in half, tore off hotel roofs and turned small cars into boats before sweeping into Georgia and South Carolina , where it flooded roads and sent residents running for higher ground.

The Category 4 hurricane was the largest to hit Florida’s Big Bend region in more than 125 years. The storm killed 12 people and dumped between 5 and 10 inches of rain in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas, leaving more than $3.6 billion in damage, according to the National Hurricane Center.

HURRICANE JAN – 2022

Hurricane Ian briefly reached maximum Category 5 status before weakening to a Category 4 storm when it made landfall in September 2022 in southwest Florida. The storm caused more than $112 billion in damage in the US and more than 150 deaths, directly or indirectly, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The agency reported that Ian was the costliest hurricane in Florida history and the third costliest ever in the US as a whole. In addition to Florida, Ian affected Georgia, Virginia, the Carolinas and Cuba before making landfall on October 1, 2022.

HURRICANE IDA – 2021

Hurricane Ida made landfall in Louisiana as a Category 4 storm with winds of 150 mph (241 km/h) in late August 2021, knocking out power in New Orleans, blowing roofs off buildings and reversing the flow of the Mississippi River as it flowed from the river. Coastal Louisiana in one of the nation’s most important industrial corridors.

At the time, it was tied for the fifth most powerful hurricane ever to hit the continent. At least 91 deaths in nine states have been attributed to the storm — most of them from drowning, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Damage from the storm was estimated at about $36 billion.

HURRICANE ZETA – 2020

Hurricane Zeta left millions without power when it slammed into southeastern Louisiana on October 29, 2020. After leaving the Yucatan Peninsula, it weakened to a tropical storm but intensified to a Category 3 storm before reach dry land.

The hurricane caused five direct deaths and about $4.4 billion in damage in the United States, according to the National Hurricane Center.

HURRICANE DELTA – 2020

When Hurricane Delta slammed into Louisiana on October 9, 2020, residents were still cleaning up from Hurricane Laura, which had taken a similar path just six weeks earlier. Delta was a Category 4 storm before making two landfalls — both at Category 2 intensity, according to the National Hurricane Center.

It first struck the Yucatan Peninsula before coming ashore in southwestern Louisiana. Delta cost the United States $2.9 billion and was linked to six deaths in the U.S. and Mexico, according to a report by the National Hurricane Center.

HURRICANE LAURA – 2020

Hurricane Laura, a Category 4 storm, made landfall in southwest Louisiana on August 27, 2020, with winds of 150 mph (240 km/h) and a storm surge of up to 15 feet (4.5 meters) in some areas. Laura was responsible for 47 direct deaths in the United States and Hispaniola and caused about $19 billion in U.S. damage, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The deaths included five people killed by fallen trees and one person who drowned in a boat. Eight people died of carbon monoxide poisoning from the generators’ unsafe operation.