Hurricane Milton makes landfall in Florida with violent winds and rain, causing damage to reach $75 billion

As Hurricane Milton intensifies, mandatory evacuation orders are affecting up to 2 million residents in Florida, with many more in the storm’s projected trajectory. The hurricane made landfall on Florida’s west coast on Wednesday, unleashing tornadoes, towering waves, and heavy rainfall that pose a serious threat to the densely populated Tampa Bay area.

Just two weeks prior, Florida and several other states were ravaged by Hurricane Helen, which caused widespread destruction across the southern United States. In a recent address from the White House, President Biden urged the public to follow local evacuation recommendations, emphasizing, “This is a matter of life and death.”

According to the National Hurricane Center (NHC), Hurricane Milton made landfall as a Category 3 storm with sustained winds reaching 205 kilometers per hour. The storm’s center is projected to move through central Florida overnight, exiting off the eastern coast on Thursday.

The NHC has issued warnings about significant storm surges that could lead to severe flooding, with certain areas expected to see tides as high as 4 meters and rainfall totals climbing to 300 millimeters. Alarmingly, almost half of hurricane-related fatalities in recent years have been attributed to flooding.

Chuck Watson, a disaster modeling expert at Enki Research, estimated that local damage could range between $60 billion and $75 billion, with power outages anticipated to extend for days or even weeks.

The Financial Times has reported that the hurricane could result in insurance losses of up to $60 billion. Analysts are cautioning that the ongoing 2024 hurricane season in the U.S. may heavily influence the profitability of insurance companies. The credit rating agency Morningstar DBRS has noted that cumulative losses from the hurricane season, which runs until the end of November 2024, “could significantly impact insurance company profits,” particularly for those heavily involved in personal insurance in Florida.

Hurricane Milton has made landfall further south than Hurricane Helen, which struck the Florida west coast two weeks ago, leading to at least 230 fatalities. So far this year, the continental U.S. has endured five hurricanes, including Hurricane Beryl in July, which wreaked havoc in Houston and left millions without power.