Most expensive October weather disasters of the last 40 years
On Oct. 15, 1954, Hurricane Hazel made landfall on the border of North and South Carolina. Its path through the Caribbean Sea and Haiti had already cost hundreds of lives, and as it transformed from a Category 4 hurricane to a tropical storm along the Carolina coastline, it wrought an 18-foot storm surge and demolished seaside buildings and roads.
To date, Hazel is the strongest hurricane to hit the North Carolina coast. Its damage in the Carolinas was estimated to cost $163 million, equivalent to $1.8 billion in today's dollars. It caused another $1.6 billion in damage throughout other parts of the U.S.
What was once a standout event has become more common as climate change has accelerated the number of powerful hurricanes. Beyond tropical cyclones, the U.S. is seeing more frequent billion-dollar climate-related disasters. During the 2010s, there were 131 events that caused at least $1 billion in damage, compared to only 33 in the 1980s, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
In total, the U.S. has experienced 371 billion-dollar disasters since 1980, 18 of which began in October. April and June have been the start for the most costly severe weather events, with 55 and 54 respectively. October may not be the most intense time of the year, but the end of hurricane season and fall tornado surges in the South are frequent causes of weather disasters during the month.
Stacker used data collected by the NOAA to break down the costliest weather disasters since 1980 that began in the month of October. All cost data is listed in current dollars, and location data is included for storms based on states listed in the written report of each event.
Read on to see the most expensive events, when they happened, their costs, and the number of deaths they caused.
