Billion-Dollar Disasters: The Costs, in Lives and Dollars, Have Never Been So High
Fueled by climate change, extreme weather set records this year, causing close to $50 billion and the loss of at least 188 lives by early October.
December 29, 2020
San Miguel County Firefighters battle a brush fire along Japatul Road during the Valley Fire in Jamul, California on Sept. 6, 2020 Credit: Sandy Huffaker/AFP via Getty Images
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Update: The final tally, released on Jan. 8, showed that last year blew away previous annual records for extreme weather events in the United States, with 22 billion-dollar disasters that piled up $95 billion in damages and claimed 262 lives, according to the National Centers for Environmental Information.