Most Costly Climate Disasters of 2024 Killed 2,000 People and Inflicted $229 Billion in Damages

The most financially costly climate disasters around the world in 2024 produced $229 billion in damages and killed 2,000 people, according to Counting the Cost 2024: A year of climate breakdown, the most recent analysis of insurance payouts by nonprofit Christian Aid.

Three-quarters of these calamities occurred in the United States, reported The Guardian.

“Behind the billion-dollar figures are countless lost lives and livelihoods,” said Dr. Mariam Zachariah, a researcher for World Weather Attribution at Imperial College London, in a press release from Christian Aid.

Since the financial costs are only based on insurance losses, the numbers do not reflect the true figures, which are likely to be higher, in addition to the often uncounted human costs.

Among the extreme weather events that caused the most financial damage in 2024, Hurricane Milton in October was the most costly single event, bringing $60 billion in damages with 25 lives lost. Hurricane Helene, which struck Cuba, Mexico and the U.S. in September, was close behind with $55 billion. The monster hurricane killed 232 people.

In addition to these major hurricanes, smaller storms in the U.S. killed 88 people and brought $60 billion in damages.

“The data is now also showing that climate change is doubling the likelihood of many extreme weather events like floods and tropical cyclones and increasing their intensity, leading to massive destruction and loss of life,” said Patrick Watt, chief executive officer of Christian Aid, in the report.

People living in poverty in the world’s lower income nations are disproportionately affected by the costs and impacts of climate events. This highlights the necessity for adaptation strategies to mitigate vulnerability before disasters strike.

December’s Cyclone Chido in Mayotte potentially killed more than 1,000 people.

Left to right: Satellite imagery of homes and buildings near College de Kwale in Mamoudzou, Malotte before Cyclone Chido, on March 19, 2024, and after on Dec. 16, 2024. 2024 Maxar Technologies

“The tragic impacts of Cyclone Chido in Mayotte really show how vulnerable small islands are to climate change. A single storm can severely damage critical infrastructure like power, water supply and communications across an entire island, making international support essential. Small islands must be supported to build resilience to tropical cyclones. It is not enough to just improve early warning systems, we must improve the resilience of homes and critical infrastructure to ensure that people have somewhere safe to shelter and essential services are operational during and after the storm,” said University of Reading professor Liz Stephens in the report.

Worldwide, no region escaped the devastating impacts of climate disasters this year. Flooding in China killed 315 and cost $15.6 billion, while Southwest Asia’s Typhoon Yagi took the lives of more than 800 and caused widespread destruction from Thailand to the Philippines.

Three of the 10 most costly disasters occurred in Europe, including Storm Boris and floods in Germany and Spain, which collectively claimed 258 lives and caused $13.87 billion in damages.

In Bangladesh, heatwaves affected 33 million, while West African floods displaced millions across Chad, Niger and Nigeria. Water levels in the Amazon River have fallen by 90 percent, threatening livelihoods for the region’s Indigenous communities.

“Most of these disasters show clear fingerprints of climate change. Extreme weather is clearly causing incredible suffering in all corners of the world,” Zachariah said, as The Guardian reported. “This report is just a snapshot of climate devastation in 2024. There are many more droughts, heatwaves, wildfires and floods not included that are becoming more frequent and intense.”

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Christian Aid noted that other of the year’s major climate disasters had a lower immediate cost financially, but would have incalculable subsequent costs in terms of deaths; the destruction of ecosystems; and damage to sea levels, food supplies and social stability.

Watt urged the world’s policymakers to reduce emissions and increase financial compensation to poor countries.

“The human suffering caused by the climate crisis reflects political choices. There is nothing natural about the growing severity and frequency of droughts, floods and storms,” Watt said, as reported by The Guardian. “Disasters are being supercharged by decisions to keep burning fossil fuels, and to allow emissions to rise. And they’re being made worse by the consistent failure to deliver on financial commitments to the poorest and most climate-vulnerable countries.”

“In 2025 we need to see governments leading, and taking action to accelerate the green transition, reduce emissions, and fund their promises,” Watt said in the press release.