Following the path of destruction by Hurricane Milton in the state of Florida, CoreLogic estimates the insured wind and flood losses from the storm are between $17 billion and $28 billion. The total amount of damage, including losses to uninsured property as a result of Hurricane Milton, is estimated to be between $21 billion and $34 billion.
CoreLogic’s assessment of Hurricane Milton’s damage indicates the majority of losses—between $13 billion to $22 billion—will be from wind. Coastal flood losses are expected to be highest in Sarasota and areas to the south, such as Naples and Fort Myers.
“Hurricane Milton was an unusual storm, causing unexpected wind and flood conditions across the state of Florida. As Hurricane Milton neared landfall, it interacted with the jet stream over the southeastern U.S. causing the winds on the northern and northwestern sides of the hurricane—generally known to be weaker—to be atypically strong,” says Dr. Daniel Betten, director of forensic meteorology at CoreLogic. “To add to the complexity, weather gauges in coastal Florida also measured hurricane force winds over Sarasota south of where Milton made landfall, essentially creating two distinct lanes of damaging, hurricane-force winds.”
Prior to the storm, CoreLogic estimated that 341,396 single-family and multifamily homes were at risk due to Hurricane Milton in Tampa Bay and an additional 159,961 properties were at risk in Sarasota.
Hurricane Milton’s landfall came less than two weeks after Hurricane Helene hit the Southeast, causing nearly $50 billion damage, according to CoreLogic.
While Hurricane Helene made landfall over the Big Bend region of the Florida coastline miles from Tampa Bay, CoreLogic says there will be some overlap between the tropical storm force wind fields, storm surge, and inland flooding.
