Over the past few decades, different types of… Natural disasters It has wreaked havoc across the United States, but which disasters cost the most?
NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) lists hundreds of costly disasters that occurred from 1980 through 2024.
“The United States has experienced 403 climate and weather disasters since 1980 where total damages/costs reached or exceeded $1 billion (including CPI adjustment through 2024). The total cost of these 403 events exceeds $2.915 trillion,” NCEI notes. .
Hurricane Katrina tops the list, costing a staggering $200 billion. (Tom Stoddart/Getty Images)
Hurricanes occupy Nine of the top 10 locations on the “Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters” list.
Cost estimates provided by NCEI are not precise – there are different numbers reported for the disasters on the list, including estimated CPI-adjusted cost, as well as lower and upper bounds with 75%, 90%, and 95% confidence intervals.
1. Hurricane Katrina, $201.3 billion
In this space image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Hurricane Katrina is seen in the Gulf of Mexico on August 28, 2005. (NOAA via Getty Images)
Hurricane Katrina, which struck the United States in 2005, tops the list with an estimated cost of $201.3 billion, after adjusting for the consumer price index. The minimum cost at the 95% confidence interval is $151.3 billion, while the upper limit is $242.8 billion.
“A Category 3 hurricane will initially impact the United States as a Category 1 near Miami, FL, then as a strong Category 3 along the eastern coasts from Los Angeles to western MS, resulting in severe storm surge damage (possibly exceeding a maximum height of 30 feet) over length of the Los Angeles-MS-AL coastline, wind damage, and failure of portions of the New Orleans levee system,” the summary notes. “Internal impacts included high winds and some flooding in AL, MS, FL, TN, KY, IN, OH and GA.”
2. Hurricane Harvey, $160 billion
Hurricane Harvey, which struck the United States in 2017, is the second costliest disaster on the NCEI's list, with 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.
“A Category 4 hurricane made landfall near Rockport, Texas, causing widespread damage. Harvey's devastation was made all the more evident by the large area of heavy rain that led to historic flooding across Houston and surrounding areas,” part of the summary.
3. Hurricane Ian: $119.6 billion
The third most expensive disaster on the NCEI list is 2022's Hurricane Ian at a cost of $119.6 billion, adjusted for the Consumer Price Index. 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 mph,” and “slowly crossed Florida” before “re-emerging over the Atlantic Ocean as a tropical storm, intensifying again to Category “The first.” Hurricane on September 30, making landfall near Georgetown, South Carolina, with sustained winds of 85 mph causing further coastal flooding damage and destroying several large piers near Myrtle Beach. South Carolina,” the description notes.
Destroyed homes and debris are seen on Matlacha Island in Lee County, Florida, in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian on November 7, 2022. (Giorgio Vieira/AFP via Getty Images)
The rest of the top ten
Ian is followed on the list by Hurricanes Maria ($2017 – $115.2 billion), Sandy ($2012 – $88.5 billion), Ida ($2021 – $84.6 billion), Helen (2024 – $78.7 billion), Irma (2017 – $64 billion) and Andrew. (2024 – $78.7 billion). 1992 – $60.5 billion).
The 1988 “US drought/heat wave” was listed as the tenth costliest disaster on the list, with an estimated CPI-adjusted cost of $54.6 billion.
“The 1988 drought in much of the United States resulted in very heavy losses in agriculture and related industries. Combined direct and indirect deaths (i.e., excess deaths) due to heat stress are estimated at approximately 5,000,” the summary notes.
What about forest fires?
While many Americans have taken an interest in Horrific fires devour parts of California Since last week, no wildfires have made the top 10 on the NCEI list.
In this category, NCEI notes that fires in 2018 were the costliest, listing “Western wildfires, California Firestorm” at an estimated value of $30 billion, after adjusting for the Consumer Price Index.
The 2018 Camp Fire tops the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection's (CAL FIRE) lists of “20 Deadliest California Wildfires” and “20 Most Destructive California Wildfires.” The fire killed 85 people and destroyed 18,804 structures, CAL FIRE notes.
The January 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires have already reached spots three and four on the list of the state's most destructive wildfires, with 5,316 structures destroyed in the Palisades Fire and more than 5,000 structures destroyed in the Eaton Fire, although the numbers are not final.
Los Angeles fires: Destroyed more than 10,000 homes and businesses, killing at least 10 people
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Accuweather The preliminary estimate of damage and economic losses associated with the fires sweeping parts of California is $135 billion to $150 billion.
AccuWeather estimates a cost of $13 billion to $16 billion for Maui wildfires in 2023, and $225 billion to $250 billion for Hurricane Helen in 2024. NCEI lists the 2023 Maui fire as a “Hawaii Firestorm” and cites a revised cost estimate According to the Consumer Price Index, it amounts to $5.7 billion.
