KCC pegs Winter Storm Elliott insured losses at $5.4B
The ‘once-in-a-generation’ storm resulted in marked loss of life along with damaged properties and vehicles.
The arctic weather event that unfolded in the United States Dec. 21-26, 2022, has come to be known as Winter Storm Elliott. The “once-in-a-generation” storm was characterized by an extratropical cyclone that created record cold temperatures, blizzard conditions and high winds that impacted most of the country.
Using its high-resolution Winter Storm Reference Model, Karen Clark & Co. estimated the storm will result in $5.4 billion in insured losses across 42 states. This figure represents damage to privately-insured vehicles along with residential, commercial and industrial properties but may not reflect the event’s loss of life nor its historic travel disruptions.
The storm killed at least 91 people, according to The Weather Channel. More than a third of those deaths occurred in the Buffalo, N.Y.-area, where lake effect snowfall exceeded 55 inches over the five-day period.
KCC analysts took into account the following storm highlights:
- On Dec. 21, 2022, Elliott brought frigid arctic air southward into the U.S., plummeting the temperatures to under 20°F below average across most of the Eastern U.S.
- Sub-freezing temperatures reached the Gulf Coast and lingered over the Southeast U.S. where tens of thousands of homes and businesses were without power from high winds that had occurred on the warm side of the arctic cold front.
- The frigid arctic air mass fueled lake effect snowfall over the Great Lakes and historic blizzard conditions that lasted over 36 hours in Buffalo.
- On December 24th, a potent extratropical cyclone formed and explosively deepened 24mb over 24 hours, earning the title “bomb cyclone”, to a central pressure of 963mb and brought high winds of over 40mph to the Great Lakes region.
“Winter Storm Elliott caused significant damage across much of the country,” KCC said in a brief released Dec. 28, 2022. “The most impacted states are Texas, Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and New York.”
The firm added that freezing temperatures accounted for most of the losses as they caused widespread infrastructure disruptions and burst pipes. KCC estimated that commercial losses accounted for roughly 50% of its insured-loss total.
The storm, which the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration called an “historic artic outbreak,” also resulted in the delay or cancelation of more than 12,000 flights, according to CNBC and FligthAware. Southwest Airlines accounted for about a quarter of those cancelled flights. Company spokesman said a combination of factors including the weather and staffing problems caused the disruption. United Airlines also noted equipment and infrastructure challenges spurred by the extreme cold and high winds.
“I don’t have an apology big enough to change what you’ve experienced already,” Sonya Lacore, vice president of inflight operations for Southwest, wrote in a staff memo that was quoted by CNBC. “This storm is unlike anything we’ve experienced in decades, and our Crew Scheduling tools simply aren’t set up for a storm of this size.”
Winter Storm Elliott also caused power outages, train service delays, major event cancellations, package-delivery problems, and unplanned factory closures.
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