The 10 Costliest Hurricanes in U.S. History
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The devastation wrought by Hurricane Sandy this week is a good reminder that the strength of a storm is less important than where it makes landfall. Despite its enormous size, it was classified as only a Category 2 storm at its peak, and by the time it made landfall in the Northeast, it had been reclassified as a "post-tropical storm" (a designation that will force insurers to <a href="http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/11/02/this-meteorological-term-will-cost-insurers-billio/" target="_blank">pay more in claims</a> than they would have for a storm classified as a hurricane).<br />
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Hurricane or not, though, Sandy's landfall near New York City and other major population centers in the region immediately vaulted it onto the list of the most expensive storms in the nation's history. While the first wave of cleanup and recovery continues throughout the region, there's little doubt that the massive flooding and wind damage associated with Sandy will ultimately cost tens of billions of dollars, to say nothing of the human toll.<br />
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Click through our gallery to find out how Sandy stacks up to other devastating Atlantic storms.<br />
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* - Costs adjusted to 2010 dollars on basis of U.S. Dept. of Commerce Implicit Price Deflator for Construction. The storms from 2011 and later are not adjusted. The National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) rates Hurricane Katrina's damage at $133.8 billion 2007 dollars.</p>
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<strong>Landfall Category:</strong> 1<br />
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<strong>U.S. Damage:</strong> 11.7 Billion<br />
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<strong>Date of storm:</strong> June 18-23, 1972<br />
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<strong>U.S. areas affected:</strong> Florida(Panhandle), Georgia, Carolinas, Northeastern U.S.<br />
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This June 23, 1972, photo shows people in Harrisburg, Pa., being rescued by boat from their homes after Hurricane Agnes caused the Susquehanna River to overflow its banks, leading to heavy flooding.</p>
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Source:<a href="http://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/damage.asp" target="_blank"> Weather Underground</a></p>
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<strong>Landfall Category:</strong> 4<br />
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<strong>U.S. Damage:</strong> $9.7 billion<br />
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<strong>Date of storm:</strong> Sept. 17-22, 1989<br />
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<strong>U.S. areas affected:</strong> Georgia, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Virginia, U.S. Virgin Islands<br />
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A South Carolina man displays a photograph of his house taken before Hurricane Hugo destroyed it in September 1989.</p>
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Source:<a href="http://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/damage.asp" target="_blank"> Weather Underground</a></p>
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<strong>Landfall Category:</strong> 3<br />
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<strong>U.S. Damage:</strong> $11.8 billion<br />
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<strong>Date of storm:</strong> Sept. 20-26, 2004<br />
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<strong>U.S. areas affected:</strong> Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas<br />
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Rosa Machado (center) of Lafite, La., walks through waist-deep flood water as a neighbor's trailer burns following Hurricane Rita's late September passage through the area.</p>
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Source:<a href="http://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/damage.asp" target="_blank"> Weather Underground</a></p>
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<strong>Landfall Category:</strong> 1<br />
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<strong>U.S. Damage:</strong> $15.8 Billion<br />
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<strong>Date of storm:</strong> Aug. 26-28, 2011<br />
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<strong>U.S. areas affected:</strong> Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maine, Maryland, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, Vermont, Washington DC</p>
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Hurricane Irene crippled 10 states during its slow climb up the Eastern Seaboard, causing massive flooding and power outages. The brutal storm made landfall in North Carolina and traveled to Maine.</p>
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Billy Stinson (C), his wife Sandra Stinson and daughter Erin Stinson (R) comfort each other as they sit on the steps where their cottage once stood before it was destroyed by Hurricane Irene on Aug. 28, 2011 in Nags Head, N.C.</p>
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The cottage, built in 1903 was one of the first vacation cottages built on Roanoke Sound in Nags Head. Stinson had owned the home, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places, since 1963. "We were pretending, just for a moment, that the cottage was still behind us and we were just sitting there watching the sunset," said Erin afterward.</p>
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Source:<a href="http://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/damage.asp" target="_blank"> Weather Underground</a></p>
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<strong>Landfall Category:</strong> 4<br />
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<strong>U.S. Damage:</strong> $15.8 Billion<br />
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<strong>Date of storm:</strong> Aug. 13-14, 2004<br />
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<strong>U.S. areas affected:</strong> Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina<br />
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At least 13 people were killed when Hurricane Charley left a path of destruction across Florida then continued north and struck the Carolinas.<br />
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Pictured: Debris from homes destroyed by Hurricane Charley litters the waterways that surround much of Punta Gorda, Fla.</p>
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Source:<a href="http://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/damage.asp" target="_blank"> Weather Underground</a></p>
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<strong>Landfall Category:</strong> 3<br />
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<strong>U.S. Damage:</strong> $19.8 Billion<br />
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<strong>Date of storm:</strong> Sept. 15-21, 2004<br />
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<strong>U.S. areas affected:</strong> Alabama, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia<br />
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Residents of Pensacola Beach, Fla., pass by an SUV half buried in sand as they walk back to their homes on Sept. 22, 2004, to inspect the damage caused by Hurricane Ivan.</p>
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Source:<a href="http://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/damage.asp" target="_blank"> Weather Underground</a></p>
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<strong>Landfall Category</strong>: 3<br />
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<strong>U.S. Damage:</strong> $20.6 Billion<br />
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<strong>Date of storm:</strong> Oct. 24, 2005<br />
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<strong>U.S. areas affected:</strong> Florida<br />
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After striking Mexico from the Caribbean Sea, Wilma turned northeast, strengthened over the Gulf or Mexico, and made landfall near Cape Romano, Fla., on Oct. 24 as a Category 3 hurricane. The eye crossed the Florida Peninsula in less than five hours, and it moved into the Atlantic just north of Palm Beach as a still forceful Category 2 hurricane.<br />
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Pictured: A public phone is surrounded by flood waters near a block of hotels as Hurricane Wilma lashes Cancun, Mexico, on Oct. 21, 2005.</p>
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Source:<a href="http://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/damage.asp" target="_blank"> Weather Underground</a></p>
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<strong>Landfall Category:</strong> 2<br />
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<strong>U.S. Damage:</strong> $27.8 Billion<br />
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<strong>Date of storm:</strong> Sept. 12-14, 2008<br />
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<strong>U.S. areas affected:</strong> Arkansas, Illiniois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas<br />
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Flood waters from Hurricane Ike were reportedly as high as eight feet in some areas, causing widespread damage across the coast of Texas in September 2008.<br />
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Pictured: A home in Gilchrist, Texas, is left standing among debris left by Hurricane Ike.</p>
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Source:<a href="http://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/damage.asp" target="_blank"> Weather Underground</a></p>
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<strong>Landfall Category:</strong> 5<br />
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<strong>U.S. Damage:</strong> $45.5 Billion<br />
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<strong>Date of storm:</strong> Aug. 24-26, 1992<br />
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<strong>U.S. areas affected:</strong> Florida, Louisiana<br />
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Andrew came ashore in Florida near high tide, pushing a 16.9 foot storm tide (the sum of the storm surge and astronomical tide) into Biscayne Bay, a record for the southeast Florida peninsula.</p>
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Source:<a href="http://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/damage.asp" target="_blank"> Weather Underground</a></p>
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<strong>Landfall Category:</strong> Post-Tropical Storm<br />
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<strong>U.S. Damage:</strong> <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/01/hurricane-sandy-economic-damage_n_2057850.html" target="_blank">Early estimates</a> indicate damage and economic losses as high as $50 billion<br />
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<strong>Date of Storm:</strong> October 29-31, 2012<br />
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<strong>U.S. Areas Affected:</strong> Connecticut, D.C., Delaware, Florida, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, West Virginia, Vermont, and Virginia.<br />
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Pictured: NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 29: Rising water, caused by Hurricane Sandy, rushes into a subterranian parking garage on October 29, 2012, in the Financial District of New York, United States. Hurricane Sandy, which threatens 50 million people in the eastern third of the U.S., is expected to bring days of rain, high winds and possibly heavy snow. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the closure of all New York City will bus, subway and commuter rail service as of Sunday evening.</p>
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<strong>Landfall Category:</strong> 3<br />
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<strong>U.S. Damage: </strong>$105.8 Billion<br />
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<strong>Date of storm:</strong> Aug. 25-30, 2005<br />
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<strong>U.S. areas affected:</strong> Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee<br />
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Katrina unleashed torrential rains and a potent storm surge that led to disastrous flooding that left about 1,600 people dead, destroyed thousands of homes and marred the presidency of George W. Bush, whose administration was severely criticized for its handling of the crisis.<br />
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Pictured: President Bush (center) tours the devastation in New Orleans with Mayor Ray Nagin (right), Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco and Vice Adm. Thad Allen.</p>
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Source:<a href="http://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/damage.asp" target="_blank"> Weather Underground</a></p>
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