Much of the Midwest has experienced heavy rain, high winds, flooding, hail, tornadoes, lightning and other destructive weather over the past few weeks.
A hailstorm hit San Antonio, Texas, in mid-April, pelting grapefruit-size hail on vehicles and homes. The Insurance Council of Texas estimated damage to homes at $800 million and vehicle damage at $560 million.
One week later, more than 1,000 homes were flooded and parts of Houston, Texas, were under a mandatory evacuation as the Colorado River flooded multiple neighborhoods. More than $5 billion in damage was reported as 9 million residents were under a flash flood watch. A state of emergency was declared in nine counties, and the rain continued to fall. At least eight people lost their lives and officials were worried that area dams were at “extremely high risk.” More than 100,000 customers lost power and hundreds of flights were canceled.
Mississippi was next in line as the same line of storms that hit Houston dumped almost 12 inches of rain in five hours, flooding streams, rivers and streets. Hardest hit were Gulfport, Biloxi and D'Iberville where residents and businesses owners were stranded and 70 people were rescued.
During the last week of April, storms produced a series of EF1 tornadoes across Oklahoma and Arkansas. Meteorologists estimated that as many as 12 tornadoes may have touched down during the storms.
|April was a costly month
On a May 5 conference call, Thomas J. Wilson, chairman and CEO of Allstate Corp., said the company had 1,200 adjusters on the ground in Texas in the hardest hit areas, and that the company had experienced its most severe hailstorm loss ever with two storms that hit the state earlier last month.
Aon Benfield's catastrophe model development team has said that April was the “costliest for five years in terms of economic and insured losses for natural disasters,” based on its Global Catastrophe Report, which evaluates natural disasters worldwide. Total economic losses are expected to exceed $1 billion for the flooding that occurred in Houston, Texas alone.
Property Claims Services (PCS) concurs in its first quarter Catastrophe Review, saying it “was the worst first quarter in a decade in terms of catastrophe frequency and severity.” The report found that U.S. catastrophe activity reached $3.8 billion in the first quarter, up from $3.6 billion for the same period in 2015. The number of catastrophe events for the quarter increased by more than 40%.
The 13 catastrophe events PCS identified for the first quarter of 2016 resulted in $3.8 billion in insured losses, and two more under investigation could be added to the list. Texas had the greatest losses at $1.9 billion and five identified catastrophe events. California had four events estimated at $240 million, and Illinois had two events that totaled $210 million in damages. Altogether, 29 states were affected by catastrophe activity during the first quarter.
And if hurricane researchers are correct, insurers could be in for an active season. Researchers at North Carolina State predict 15 to 18 named storms, 8 to 11 hurricanes, and three to five major storms. The Colorado State University Meteorological Project had a slightly lower projection with 12 named storms and five hurricanes (including two major ones in the Atlantic).
While the El Nino weather pattern has helped to keep the formation of major storms in check for the past few years, the system is expected to be replaced halfway through the 2016 hurricane season (which begins June 1) with a La Nina pattern, which usually means more moisture in the Atlantic Ocean, making it easier for storms to form and grow. However, as insurers learned with Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy, it only takes one making landfall to generate billions in losses.
Here is a look at some of the damage residents across the country have experienced over the past few weeks:
Grapefruit-sized hail did extensive damage to roofs and buildings in Wiley, Texas. (Photo: Jenkins Restorations)
High winds and hail caused a record $1.3 billion in damage across much of the San Antonio area. (Photo: Jenkins Restorations)
A commercial rooftop air conditioning unit that sustained major hail damage. (Photo: HVACi)
Rising flood waters cover a baseball field in Houston, Texas. (Photo: Belfor Property Restoration)
More than 1,000 homes were flooded in Harris County, Texas, and over 900 water rescues were reported in Houston. (Photo: Belfor Property Restoration)
A person paddles through a flooded neighborhood, April 19, 2016, in Spring, Texas. Storms dumped more than a foot of rain in the Houston area, flooding dozens of neighborhoods. (Photo: David J. Phillip/AP Photo)
Residents wade through floodwaters as they evacuate their apartment complex April 18, 2016, in Houston. Storms dumped more than a foot of rain in the Houston area, flooding dozens of neighborhoods and forcing the closure of city offices and the suspension of public transit. (Photo: David J. Phillip/AP Photo)
Learn more about preparing for catastrophes at America's Claims Event (ACE), June 22-24 in Minneapolis. From technology to customer service to fraud and litigation, this two-day networking and educational conference is designed for claims professionals. Register to attend and save $350.
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