Francine Estimated to Cause $9B in Damage With $1.5B in Insured Losses

A preliminary estimate shows total damage and economic loss from Hurricane Francine in the U.S. is expected to be $9 billion.

The storm effects are continuing to be felt, and some areas have yet to report complete information about damage, injuries and other impacts, the preliminary estimate from AccuWeather shows.

Catastrophe modeler and property data firm CoreLogic is estimating insured losses from Francine will reach $1.5 billion.

“Francine is the third hurricane to hit the Gulf coast this year, but this is the first hurricane to cause widespread disruptions to the offshore oil and gas industry in years. Our preliminary estimate factors in the cost of offshore platform evacuations and operation interruptions,” stated AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jon Porter.

Francine was a short duration but impactful hurricane that hit New Orleans, with persistent downpours and wind gusts of 80 mph that caused damage and knocked out power to hundreds of thousands.

Francine then made its way northward through Alabama Thursday, bringing heavy rain and strong winds and resulting in hundreds of thousands of people being without power from the Gulf Coast northward. Winds gusting as high as 96 mph were measured near where the storm made landfall with gusts of 60-80 mph into New Orleans, according to AccuWeather.

Ahead of Francine, storm surge flooding impacted the central Gulf Coast, with the worst being southern Louisiana, where a surge of over 6 feet was measured. The storm also shut down energy platforms over an area with a high density of energy platforms in the central Gulf of Mexico, which will reduce oil output and could lead to higher gas prices for a time, according to AccuWeather.

The weather service’s estimate accounts for damage to homes, businesses, infrastructure, facilities, roadways and vehicles as well as power outages, which results in food spoilage and interruption to medical care and reflects damage that has already occurred and expected damage through the next couple of days as Tropical Rainstorm Francine moves up into the western Tennessee Valley. As a tropical storm, AccuWeather expects the system to bring flooding, the risk for severe thunderstorms and tornadoes.

The CoreLogic estimate notes that “losses from Hurricane Francine are expected to be manageable for primary carriers,” because wind damage was limited by the sparsely populated coastal region with high degree of resilience.

The parishes of St. Mary, Terrebonne, Lafourche, and Ascencion are expected to be the hardest hit by wind and storm surge flooding. Wind damage to residential property is the primary driver of modeled loss, according to CoreLogic.

By comparison, Hurricane Debby was responsible for $28 billion in total damage and economic loss in August while Hurricane Beryl brought $28 to $32 billion in total damage and economic loss in July, according to AccuWeather.

Photo: Two vehicle on Olive street are flooded during Hurricane Francine in New Orleans, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024. (David Grunfeld/The Times-Picayune via AP)

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