Three Louisiana cities out of 15 on this list aren't what any of us want to see but, it's important to understand the use of the word "devastated" here and its meaning for this list.

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When Does Hurricane Season Start?

The Atlantic hurricane season officially begins on June 1st and ends on November 30th.

As we start getting into hurricane season, all of us in Louisiana have our collective eyes sharply watching the Gulf.

Colorado State University has released their forecast for the upcoming 2024 hurricane season, and if they're right, it would be the "fifth most active in the satellite era, or since 1966" according to weather.com.

From yaleclimateconnections.org -

"The CSU team is calling for 23 named storms, 11 hurricanes, five major hurricanes, and an Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE) of 210 (171% of average)."

CoreLogic.com has released their most recent Hurricane Report which includes the 15 cities they believe are more likely to be devastated by a hurricane this season, and Louisiana, unfortunately, has three on the list.

 

Hurricane Sally Makes Landfall On Gulf Coast
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While NOAA doesn't provide forecasts predicting what parts of the U.S. could be hit the hardest, Corelogic.com does.

Corelogic.com compiles their list using the information from NOAA and by using something they call the “reconstruction cost value” which is based on "the cost to replace a structure that has been completely destroyed" according to 247wallst.com.

So, do the people at corelogic.com have a crystal ball where they can see what cities will be hit by a hurricane this season?

Not that we know of, but let's take a look at the use of the word "devastated" here and understand why they've chosen the cities they have.

What Do They Mean By Devastated?

As mentioned above, corelogic.com has compiled their list using their “reconstruction cost value” which is based on how much it would cost to replace a structure that has been completely destroyed by a hurricane.

From corelogic.com -

This covers the cost of structures, but not the lots they sit on. The primary focus of the dollar amounts are single-family homes. The forecast covers the 15 metropolitan areas most at risk.

 

Hurricane Delta Takes Aim At Louisiana's Gulf Coast
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So before we freak out over Louisiana having three cities on the list of "Cities Most Likely to Be Devastated by Hurricane" let's keep in mind, the word "Devastated" is referring to the potential cost of damages to a city if it gets hit by a hurricane in 2023.

They're not saying the cities on the list are in imminent danger. We guess they sort of are, but we think you know what we're trying to say.

No. 1 on the list is...New York. Obviously, New York very rarely deals with hurricanes, but if a hurricane did travel their way you can imagine the amount of damage they would suffer.

247wallst.com adds -

Population densities in these metro areas affect risk assessment. A lower category hurricane in a densely-populated metro area is likely to do much more damage than a higher category storm in a less-densely-populated area.

 

New Orleans takes the No. 4 spot on the list, Lafayette lands at No. 14 and Baton Rouge takes No. 15.

You can read more about the ideology used to compile this list over at 247wallst.com.

 

247wallst.com
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LOOK: The most expensive weather and climate disasters in recent decades

Stacker ranked the most expensive climate disasters by the billions since 1980 by the total cost of all damages, adjusted for inflation, based on 2021 data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The list starts with Hurricane Sally, which caused $7.3 billion in damages in 2020, and ends with a devastating 2005 hurricane that caused $170 billion in damage and killed at least 1,833 people. Keep reading to discover the 50 of the most expensive climate disasters in recent decades in the U.S.

Gallery Credit: KATELYN LEBOFF

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