Hurricane Debby Brings Six Deaths, Widespread Flood Losses in Florida, Georgia, SC

Hurricane Debby left at least six people dead Monday along with widespread flooding in the same parts of Florida and Georgia that were swamped by Hurricane Idalia less than a year ago.

Debby made landfall near Steinhatchee, in the Big Bend area of north Florida, and was moving slowly northeast Tuesday, expected to bring more heavy rain and flooding to parts of coastal Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, news and weather service reports said.

“Latest forecasts suggest up to 30 inches of rain, particularly in Georgia and South Carolina, which could challenge recent historical precedents in those states,” said a bulletin from Moody’s, an analytics and ratings firm.

With most of the damage from floodwaters, property insurers dodged a bullet. Debby had quickly strengthened in the warm waters of the northern Gulf of Mexico but remained only a Category 1 hurricane when it came ashore Monday morning. That was less intense than the Category 3 Idalia, which hit the low-lying region Aug. 27 last year.

Idalia’s claims give an idea of the potential insurance impact from Debby: Within three months of Idalia, some 25,000 property insurance claims had been filed, including about 450 private flood insurance claims, with total estimated losses of $309 million, according to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. That’s a fraction of the more than $21 billion in estimated insured losses from Hurricane Ian, which hit southwest Florida in 2022, OIR data show.

Karen Clark & Co. estimated about $2.2 billion in total insured losses, region-wide, from Idalia.

Few property owners in the area affected by Debby are expected to be covered by flood insurance. The National Flood Insurance Program indicates that about 13% of Florida households, or about 2.1 million properties, are covered by NFIP. Neptune Flood, one of the largest private flood insurance providers, said the numbers are smaller, with about 12% or just over 1 million properties covered with flood insurance in Florida.

That’s a slight increase for Florida in the last year, Neptune said in an email. Georgia and South Carolina have seen a slight drop in the number of flood policies, and the percentage of properties with flood coverage is below 2% in Georgia and below 7% in South Carolina.

Still, claims adjusters were said to be en route to flooded and wind-damaged areas. The South Carolina Department of Insurance on Monday issued a bulletin, reminding stakeholders that non-resident adjusters can work in the state after the declared emergency, as long as they can show that they are licensed in their home states. The determination is in effect for 120 days.

Meanwhile, more than 6 inches of rain fell at the airport in Savannah, Georgia, and flash flood warnings were posted for the city and for Charleston, South Carolina, the Associated Press reported. In Edisto Beach, South Carolina, a tornado damaged homes and tore down power lines.

If Debby causes severe flooding as expected in those areas, it could cause up to $1.5 billion in losses, Chuck Watson, a disaster modeler at Enki Research, told Bloomberg News. The Georgia Emergency Management Agency Director Chris Stallings told WSB-TV in Atlanta that the expected rainfall, as much as 15 inches in some areas, could produce a “500-year to 1,000-year flood” event.

In Florida, Some 500 people were rescued from flooded homes in Sarasota, and another 180 in Manatee County, according to authorities’ social media posts and news reports.

One driver was killed near Tampa when his tractor-trailer flipped over a concrete wall in the storm. A 13-year-old boy and a girl, 12, died when a tree fell on their mobile homes near Gainesville, Florida. In Dixie County, a woman and a child died in a car crash during heavy rain Sunday night, authorities reported.

One man died in south Georgia when a tree fell onto a house in Moultrie, news sites reported.

More flooding and wind losses could come later this week and farther north if Debby moves into the Atlantic and gains strength, forecasters said.

Forecasters also are watching a gathering system in the Atlantic that may push into the western Caribbean later this week. It has a 30% chance of becoming the season’s next storm within seven days, Bloomberg reported.

Moody’s warned that the increasing frequency of storms will bring unprecedented challenges for the global supply chain, potentially causing more business interruption losses.

“Proactive supply chain planning, backed by advanced risk data and analytics, is essential,” John Donigian, supplier risk management strategy leader for Moody’s, said in a statement. “For instance, by analyzing real-time data on hurricane paths and intensities, businesses can pre-emptively reroute shipments, secure alternative suppliers, and adjust inventory levels to mitigate potential disruptions.”

Top photo: Mabrey Shaffmaster, left, carries her nephew, Arlo Hoggard, 3, left, as her sister, Morgan Hoggard, carries nine-month-old son Ace Hoggard through a flooded street as Tropical Storm Debby approached Florida on Sunday in Tarpon Springs, Fla. (Douglas R. Clifford/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

Topics Catastrophe Florida Natural Disasters Profit Loss Flood Georgia Hurricane South Carolina