Normalized Continental US Tropical Cyclone Damage Estimates From 1900–2023: An Updated Methodology and Expanded Data Set

Abstract

This study presents expanded and updated normalized economic damage estimates for continental US landfalling hurricanes and tropical storms from 1900 to 2023. Here we refine our previously developed methodology by incorporating radius of maximum wind-based area weightings for population and housing unit adjustments through time. The updated methodology corrects for overestimation and underestimation issues found in previous models. Herein, two normalization paths are presented—Muller and Mooney Population and Muller and Mooney Housing—to account for changes in inflation, wealth, and population and housing unit changes, respectively. Additionally, this study extends our original 50-storm data set to 201 storms, significantly improving the historical scope and analytical power of continental United States tropical cyclone normalized loss data. Older storms like the Great Miami Hurricane (1926) remain among the most economically damaging after 2023 normalization, surpassing even recent events such as Hurricane Katrina (2005) and Hurricane Harvey (2017). This research underscores the impact of increasing coastal exposure, emphasizing how continued population growth and development in vulnerable areas are key drivers of rising tropical cyclone-related economic losses.