Hurricane Harvey is officially the second-worst storm in recent history, having caused damages of between $86 billion and $108 billion, according to a new report released Friday by Moody’s Analytics and reported by BuzzFeed News.
The ensuing flooding and landfall hit Texas’s Jefferson County the worst, and caused the most damage to homes in that area: Moody’s estimates that residential properties suffered $45 billion to $55 billion in damages. In addition, property analytics company CoreLogic added that "an estimated 70% of flood damage from Hurricane Harvey is not covered by any insurance” in both Texas and Louisiana."
"The damage and disruption faced by Southeast Texas is clearly worse than most believed earlier this week," the report stated. "Although the full extent of the damage in Houston remains uncertain, it is clear that flooding damage is widespread, leaving a sizable trail of destroyed homes, buildings and cars in its wake."
Residential properties might have been the hardest hit, but Moody’s also estimated that significant damages—between $16 billion to $20 billion—had been inflicted on commercial properties. The Arkema chemical plant in Crosby that exploded this week is only one of these properties. Vehicles and infrastructure faced about $20 million worth of damage.
Finally, Moody’s estimated that the hurricane resulted in a loss of economic output of somewhere between $8 billion and $11 billion. At the same time, however, the report stated that “Much of the economic activity disrupted by Harvey will be made up in subsequent months."
Hurricane Katrina remains the natural disaster in the history of the United States; it caused $108 billion in damages. Superstorm Sandy, which is now the third worst storm to have hit the country, caused $65 billion in damages.
