Building damage from Hurricane Milton in Florida could surpass Helene’s: ICEYE

The number of buildings in Florida impacted by Hurricane Milton are similar to, or even more than Helene which totalled over 150,000, according to ICEYE’s initial data.

Hurricane Milton made landfall on the 9th of October in Florida’s Sarasota County as a Category 3 hurricane, bringing damaging winds, tornadoes, life-threatening storm surge, and heavy rainfall.

The storm has since moved inland, reducing in strength but leaving extensive flooding and damage in its wake.

ICEYE has been monitoring the storm and its impacts since its formation, acquiring over 100 SAR satellite images of the impacted areas through thick storm clouds and even at night. We delivered the first flood extent and depth analysis on October 10th, focusing on the west coast of Florida.

ICEYE has been conducting systematic monitoring of the storm and its impacts since its initial formation, resulting in the acquisition of over 100 SAR satellite images depicting the impacted areas, even through dense storm clouds and during night-time conditions.

According to its initial analysis, Release 1, ICEYE sees “the number of buildings impacted being similar to, or even more than Helene which totalled over 150,000 buildings in Florida.”

Out of the 150,000 buildings damaged by Helene, more than 13,000 inundated by over 5 feet of water, analysts noted.

The firm added: “Our team of flood experts continues to monitor the situation and analyse and process satellite data to provide near real-time flood extent and depth information to emergency management organisations, public authorities, and insurance companies in the region.”

ICEYE’s data has been gathered through its Flood Insights product, which combines SAR satellite imagery with an abundance of third-party data, algorithms and machine learning.

This is supported by a team of experts from the fields of meteorology, hydrology, and advanced geospatial analytics.

ICEYE continues to analyse the flood and extend the analysis area. Some areas which have been impacted by flooding may not be represented in its initial data.

Hurricane Milton-related losses are expected to be $30 billion to $40 billion for the private insurance market, according to Gallagher Re. Others, like BMS Group expect the losses to be $15 billion or greater.

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