"Of more than 500 hurricanes that have hit the United States, the average storm led to up to 11,000 excess deaths, hundreds of times higher than official estimates."
"A retired sheriff’s deputy who drowned when his truck was trapped in a raging river. A pair of firefighters who had been rushing to rescue someone when their engine was crushed by a falling tree. Two Georgians whose mobile home was flipped over by powerful winds. At least 147 fatalities have already been directly attributed to Hurricane Helene as southeastern states begin to dig out from the wreckage of one of this century’s worst storms.
But Helene’s lasting damage to homes, health systems, economies and social networks could end up resulting in thousands of additional deaths in the coming years, new research suggests.
An analysis of more than 500 tropical cyclones that have hit the United States since 1930 found that the average hurricane leads to as many as 11,000 excess deaths — a figure hundreds of times higher than official mortality estimates. By combining weather records with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention mortality data from months before and after the storms struck, the study’s authors revealed how death rates in affected states remain elevated for 15 years after a storm makes landfall."
Sarah Kaplan reports for the Washington Post October 2, 2024.
SEE ALSO:
"Hurricanes Like Helene Are Deadly When They Strike And Keep Killing For Years To Come" (AP)
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