The Big Picture
The 2024 Atlantic hurricane season officially ended on Saturday, closing a historic chapter marked by record-breaking storms, widespread destruction, and a sharp increase in both intensity and frequency of hurricanes. With 11 hurricanes—well above the seasonal average of seven—eight made landfall, leaving billions of dollars in damages and hundreds of lives lost across the United States, the Caribbean, and beyond.
Key Numbers
11 hurricanes: Four more than the seasonal average.
8 landfalls: Striking the U.S., Bermuda, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Grenada.
$48.8 billion: Estimated damage from Hurricane Helene alone in the southeastern U.S.
200+ deaths: The human toll from Hurricane Helene, the deadliest U.S. hurricane since Katrina in 2005.
Record-Breaking Storms
Hurricane Beryl
First-ever Category 4 hurricane in June, later intensifying into the earliest Category 5 storm on record.
Devastated Carriacou, Grenada, and Jamaica, causing widespread crop destruction and two deaths.
“Pretty rare,” said Brian McNoldy, University of Miami hurricane researcher.
Hurricane Helene
Struck in September, causing catastrophic damage across North Carolina and the southeastern U.S.
Worst U.S. hurricane since Katrina in 2005, with $48.8 billion in damages and over 200 fatalities.
Hurricane Milton
October’s rapid intensification brought 180 mph winds, one of the strongest Gulf of Mexico hurricanes on record.
Trails only Hurricane Rita (2005) for wind speed intensity in the region.
Hurricane Rafael
A November powerhouse reaching 120 mph, tying for the strongest November Gulf hurricane with Kate (1985).
Hit Cuba, which was already reeling from Hurricane Oscar’s October blackouts.
Climate Signals
Meteorologists attribute much of the season’s unprecedented activity to unusually warm ocean temperatures, driven in part by greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane.
Warm oceans fuel hurricane formation and intensification outside typical times and regions.
"We’ve never seen storms as early and as strong as Beryl or as late and powerful as Milton,” McNoldy noted.
While climate change doesn’t cause individual storms, it "has its finger on the scale," making extreme events more likely.
Regional Impacts
Rainfall Records: Areas hit by Hurricanes Helene and Milton received up to three times their usual rainfall, with Asheville, Tampa, and Orlando recording their wettest September-October periods ever.
Economic Fallout: Communities across Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia are grappling with long-term recovery efforts.
The Bottom Line
The 2024 hurricane season underscores the increasing risks posed by a warming planet, with storms growing more intense, costly, and unpredictable. As the season closes, affected regions face a long road to recovery, highlighting the urgent need for enhanced preparedness and climate mitigation efforts.
Comments