Record 2011 Billion Dollar Weather Events, Expanded
UPDATE: See photos and video of these storms, from Social Media in our new story...
It's been quite a year, folks. In a news story, we talked about a list of weather events in 2011 (originally compiled by NOAA) which caused more than $1 billion each. Here is a video showcasing them:
NOAA's report was based on an NCDC report, and I'll borrow some graphs from it here, as well as link back to AccuWeather.com news stories and blogs that I did about the events. Here's an interesting graph showing how unusual the number of events was this year (but note that, adjusted for CPI, it's only the 3rd most damaging year on record):
It's also interesting to note that most of the events occur in the Southeast (if you're looking for an inexpensive place to live, weather-wise):
And without any further ado, here is the list:
Central / East Groundhog Day Blizzard (Jan. 29-Feb. 3):
Three major tornado outbreaks in the month of April broke most existing tornado records.
Midwest / Southeast Tornadoes (April 4-5):
Southeast / Midwest Tornadoes (April 8-11):
Midwest / Southeast Tornadoes (April 14-16):
Southeast / Ohio Valley / Midwest Tornadoes (Apr 25-28):
Midwest / Southeast Tornadoes (May 22-27):
Midwest / Southeast Tornadoes and Severe Thunderstorms (June 18-22):
Southern Plains / Southwest Drought, Heat Waves, & Wildfires (Spring-Fall):
Mississippi River Flooding (Spring-Summer):
The floods were responsible for at least two deaths. The losses were estimated to be $2 to 4 billion.
Upper Midwest Flooding (Summer):
Hurricane Irene (Aug 20-29):
The hurricane killed at least 45 people. Losses were estimated to be $8 billion.
Texas / New Mexico / Arizona Wildfires (Spring-Fall):
