Helene and Milton are both likely to be $50 billion disasters, joining ranks of most costly storms

AP Science Writer

Monstrous hurricanes Helene and Milton caused so much complex havoc that damages are still being added up, but experts in economics, insurance and risk say they are likely to be in the pantheon of super-costly $50 billion disasters. That would put them in the company of storms like Katrina, Sandy and Harvey. Making those costs even more painful is that most of that damage, particularly in Helene’s case, was not insured. Several experts say damages are skyrocketing because people are building in harm’s way, reconstruction costs are soaring faster than inflation and human-caused climate change is making storms stronger and wetter.