The Extreme Event Solutions group at Verisk, a data analytics and technology provider, estimates that industry insured losses to onshore property from wind in the U.S. due to Hurricane Beryl will range between $2 bn and $3 bn.
Hurricane Beryl formed on the evening of June 28, rapidly becoming a hurricane on June 29, and strengthening into a major hurricane the following day.
On July 1, Beryl passed through the Windward Islands as a Category 4 hurricane and became a Category 5 hurricane later that day, marking the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record in the Atlantic.
On the morning of July 2, Beryl reached peak intensity with sustained winds of 165 mph before gradually weakening due to increasing wind shear.
Despite favorable conditions for intensification, Beryl only strengthened to a Category 1 hurricane before making landfall near Matagorda Bay, Texas, at around 4 a.m. CDT on July 8. At landfall, Beryl had maximum sustained winds of 80 mph and a central pressure of 979 mb. The storm then tracked northward as it moved inland.
Impacts on the Built Environment
Beryl caused widespread and prolonged power outages in Texas, with nearly 3 million households losing power, including over 2.2 mn in Harris County.
These outages could lead to significant claims for food spoilage, mold, additional living expenses, and business interruption.
Heavy rainfall resulted in flooding of roadways and homes in the Houston area and parts of western Louisiana. Wind damage reports included tree damage to roofs, broken windows, and moderate damage to residential and apartment complexes.
Verisk’s loss estimates exclude impacts from power failures, storm surge, National Flood Insurance Program payouts, litigation, fraudulent claims, social inflation, storm surge leakage on wind-only policies, precipitation-induced flooding, losses to inland marine, ocean-going marine cargo and hull, pleasure boats, uninsured properties, infrastructure, extra-contractual obligations, hazardous waste cleanup, vandalism, civil commotion, compromised defenses, loss adjustment expenses, non-modeled losses, and offshore and non-U.S. property.
Hurricane Beryl was a deadly and destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that impacted parts of the Caribbean, the Yucatán Peninsula, and the Gulf Coast of the United States in late June and early July 2024.
It was the earliest-forming Category 5 hurricane on record and the second such storm in the month of July, the other being 2005’s Hurricane Emily.
Beryl was also the strongest hurricane to develop within the Main Development Region (MDR) of the Atlantic before the month of July. The second named storm, first hurricane, and first major hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, Beryl broke many meteorological records for the months of June and July, primarily for formation and intensity.
Verisk is a strategic data analytics and technology partner to the global insurance industry. It helps clients improve operating efficiency, enhance underwriting and claims outcomes, combat fraud, and make informed decisions about global risks such as climate change, extreme events, sustainability, and political issues.
