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iStock/ Kyrien
14 September 2018Insurance

Hurricane Florence to cause $30-60bn economic loss

Hurricane Florence will cause $30-60 billion in economic impact and damage, according to estimates by commercial weather forecasting services provider AccuWeather.

Hurricane Florence is on a path of destruction that will put millions of people at risk and threaten billions of dollars in property damage, centred on the Carolinas, through this weekend, AccuWeather said.

Florence dipped to category 2 hurricane strength with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph on Wednesday evening. During Thursday evening, it became a category 1 storm with sustained winds of 90 mph.

Despite the hurricane weakening somewhat since its peak as a category 4, it has grown substantially in overall size and its predicted deceleration in forward speed will take a costly toll, AccuWeather said.

The forward speed of Florence has dropped from 17 mph on Wednesday to less than 5 mph during Thursday afternoon. AccuWeather meteorologists believe that the hurricane will continue to meander slowly near the Carolina coast through Saturday.

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More on this story

Insurance
19 September 2018   Industry insured losses resulting from Hurricane Florence’s winds and storm surge will be between $1.7 billion and $4.6 billion, according to estimates by catastrophe risk modelling firm AIR Worldwide.
Insurance
18 September 2018   Insured losses from Hurricane Florence will be around $2.5 billion, according to KCC estimates.
Insurance
17 September 2018   Losses from Hurricane Florence will be largely retained by property/casualty insurers only “dampening” their third quarter earnings. Only reinsurers and ILS funds with low attachment points may find themselves subject to claims, according to a report by Moody’s, which also predicted no cat bonds would be triggered.