In recent decades there have been several types natural disasters have wreaked havoc in the US, but which disasters cost the most?
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) lists hundreds of costly disasters that occurred between 1980 and 2024.
“The US has experienced 403 weather and climate disasters since 1980, with total damages/costs reaching or exceeding $1 billion (including CPI adjustment through 2024). The total cost of these 403 events is more than $2.915 trillion,” the NCEI notes.
Hurricane Katrina tops the list with a staggering price tag of $200 billion. (Tom Stoddart/Getty Images)
Hurricanes occupy nine of the top 10 places on the “Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters” list.
The cost estimates provided by NCEI are not accurate. There are several figures for the disasters listed, including the CPI-adjusted estimated costs, as well as lower and upper bounds with 75%, 90%, and 95% confidence intervals.
1. Hurricane Katrina, $201.3 billion
This NOAA satellite image shows Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico on August 28, 2005. (NOAA via Getty Images)
Topping the list with an estimated CPI-adjusted cost of $201.3 billion is Hurricane Katrina, which hit the US in 2005. The lower bound for the cost at a 95% confidence interval is $151.3 billion, while the upper bound is $242.8 billion.
“Category 3 hurricane initially hits the US as a Category 1 near Miami, FL, and then as a strong Category 3 along the eastern LA-western MS coastlines, resulting in severe storm surge damage (maximum storm surge likely in excess of 30 feet) along the LA-MS-AL shorelines, wind damage, and the failure of portions of the New Orleans levee system,” according to a summary. “Inland impacts include high winds and some flooding in the states of AL, MS, FL, TN, KY, IN, OH and GA.”
2. Hurricane Harvey, $160 billion
Hurricane Harvey, which hit the US in 2017, is the second costliest disaster on the NCEI list, costing an estimated CPI-adjusted $160 billion. The lower bound at the 95% confidence interval is $108.8 billion, while the upper bound is $211.2 billion.
“Category 4 hurricane made landfall near Rockport, Texas, causing widespread damage. Harvey’s devastation was most pronounced due to the large area of extreme rainfall that caused historic flooding in Houston and surrounding areas,” a statement said. part of the summary.
3. Hurricane Ian, $119.6 billion
The third most expensive disaster on the NCEI list is 2022’s Hurricane Ian, worth $119.6 billion, adjusted for CPI. The lower bound at the 95% confidence interval is $83 billion, while the upper bound is $155 billion.
“Ian made landfall near Cayo Costa, Florida, as a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 150 miles per hour,” and “slowly crossed Florida” before “re-emerging over the Atlantic Ocean as a tropical storm, re-intensifying into a Category 1 hurricane on September 30, and made landfall near Georgetown, SC, with sustained winds of 85 miles per hour, causing more coastal flooding damage and several major piers near Myrtle Beach, South destroyed. Carolina,” the description reads.
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Destroyed homes and debris are seen on Matlacha Island in Lee County, Florida in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian on November 7, 2022. (Giorgio Viera I/AFP via Getty Images)
The rest of the top 10
Ian is followed on the list by Hurricanes Maria (2017 – $115.2 billion), Sandy (2012 – $88.5 billion), Ida (2021 – $84.6 billion), Helene (2024 – $78.7 billion), Irma (2017 – $64 billion) and Andrew (1992 – $60.5 billion).
A 1988 “American Drought/Heat Wave” is the 10th most expensive disaster on the list, with an estimated CPI-adjusted cost of $54.6 billion.
“The 1988 drought across much of the US with very severe losses to agriculture and related industries. Combined direct and indirect deaths (i.e. excess mortality) due to heat stress are estimated at 5,000,” the summary said.
What about forest fires?
While many Americans have paid attention to the horrific fires devouring parts of California Since last week, forest fires no longer appear in the top 10 of the NCEI list.
In that category, NCEI indicates that 2018 fires were the most expensive, listing “Western Wildfires, California Firestorm” at an estimated $30 billion, CPI-adjusted.
The 2018 Camp Fire tops the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) lists for “Top 20 Deadliest Wildfires in California” and “Top 20 Most Destructive Wildfires in California.” The fire resulted in 85 deaths and destroyed 18,804 buildings, CAL FIRE indicates.
The Palisades and Eaton fires of January 2025 have already landed at spots three and four on the list of most destructive wildfires in the state, with 5,316 structures destroyed during the Palisades Fire and more than 5,000 destroyed during the Eaton Fire, though the figures are not yet final.
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from AccuWeather The preliminary estimate of damage and economic loss from the fires devastating parts of California is $135 to 150 billion.
AccuWeather estimates $13 billion to $16 billion for Maui wildfires in 2023 and $225 billion to $250 billion for Hurricane Helene in 2024. The NCEI calls the 2023 Maui fire “Hawaii Firestorm” and indicates that the CPI-adjusted cost is 5 .7 billion dollars.
