May 23 - (The Insurer) - Insured losses from the severe convective storms $(SCS)$ that hit the U.S. from May 14 to 20 are estimated at between $4 billion and $7 billion, Gallagher Re said on Thursday.
The mid-May storms are likely to push the year’s total SCS-related insured losses beyond $20 billion, surpassing the 10-year average and nearing the five-year average of $25 billion, the reinsurance broker said in a LinkedIn post.
The week-long disaster event passed through the central, southern and eastern U.S., killing at least 29 people and damaging thousands of homes, vehicles and farms.
The deadliest single-day outbreak on May 16 caused at least 27 tornado-related deaths, with Missouri, Kentucky and Virginia being among the hardest-hit states, Gallagher Re said.
The St. Louis metro area alone suffered $1.6 billion in property damage from an EF3 tornado that destroyed about 5,000 properties. An EF4 tornado in Kentucky took 19 lives.
As of May 20, the U.S. had already experienced eight billion-dollar SCS events this year, compared to 13 in the same period in 2024.
With the SCS losses rising faster than the decadal average of $19 billion, Gallagher Re attributed the surge to higher population and housing unit exposure in storm-affected areas.
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