Over Past Decade, Tornadoes Caused an Average of $2.5 Million in Damages per Storm Across the U.S.

NEW YORK, April 1, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- April kicks off what is typically the three most active months of the year for tornadoes in the United States, and tornado territory extends well beyond the Great Plains, as recent outbreaks have made clear. But where did Tornadoes cause the biggest financial devastation over the past decade? According to a new report from ValuePenguin.com by LendingTree, Tornadoes resulted in $2.5 million in property damage per storm from 2010 through 2020, but FEMA's records show that just two states received nearly 50% of the agency's disaster relief funds during this period, with unlikely Massachusetts leading the way. Here are the key findings from this report:

• Tornadoes caused more than $2.5 million in property damage per storm and resulted in nearly 1,000 fatalities. From 2010 to 2020, a total of 5,710 tornadoes spawned across every state but Alaska. Combined, tornadoes destroyed more than $14.1 billion in property and crops across the 48 states that had damages
• Tornadoes in Alabama, Texas, Mississippi and Illinois dealt out more than $1 billion in damages. These states saw 1,167 storms from 2010 to 2020 — one-fifth of the country's total. Notably, while Ohio, Tennessee, Georgia and North Carolina had fewer storms, the economic devastation from each twister was steeper. While an average of 149 tornadoes touched down in these states from 2010 to 2020, they caused an average of nearly $696.4 million in damage.
• There were only 16 disaster declarations that led to federally backed disaster relief from FEMA from 2010-2020, despite there being a total of 5,710 tornadoes in that time period. Since 2010, FEMA has allocated $359,768,106 in public assistance to states that have been hit by strong tornadoes — or $22,485,507 per disaster that required federal assistance.
• Surprisingly, the state that most depended on FEMA funds was not in Tornado Alley. A severe outbreak in 2011 resulted in Massachusetts receiving more than $100 million in FEMA money — 28% of the total amount that the agency dedicated to after-storm responses from 2010-2020. Oklahoma, which ranked 2nd, received 21% of the public assistance funding in the same period.

According to Andrew Hurst, Insurance Data analyst at ValuePenguin.com, "While FEMA does provide funds after disasters to help Americans recover from the devastation, homeowners should not depend on FEMA funding as their back-up plan. The agency only made 16 declarations for twisters in the past ten years — while there were more than 5,000 recorded tornadoes in the same time period." Andrew adds, "If you are preparing for the upcoming Tornado season, double-check your home insurance coverage - and make sure your insurance will allow you to recover completely after a storm. While most homeowners can be assured that their rates won't rise precipitously after a tornado, if you aren't adequately insured, you may face hundreds of thousands of dollars of damage you may need to pay out of pocket."

To view the full report, visit: https://www.valuepenguin.com/damage-caused-by-tornadoes

ValuePenguin.com collected Tornado data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Centers for Environmental Information, and data on the states that received federal funds after a tornado from OpenFEMA. ValuePenguin analysts also looked at insurer filings over the past decade to understand how tornadoes impacted homeowners insurance premiums in affected states.

About ValuePenguin.com:. ValuePenguin.com and its parent company, LendingTree®, have a common mission: to empower consumers with tools, information, and resources to help them make smarter, more informed financial decisions. For more information, please visit www.valuepenguin.com, like our Facebook page or follow us on Twitter @ValuePenguin.

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SOURCE ValuePenguin.com

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