Tornado outbreak causes estimated $16 billion in rebuilding costs: Cotality

An estimated 63,000 properties, with a combined reconstruction cost of nearly $16 billion, were potentially damaged by the May 15 to 18 Midwest tornado outbreak, according to Cotality, formerly known as CoreLogic Inc.

Missouri was hit hardest, with nearly 23,500 properties potentially within tornado paths from May 16 to 18, the data analytics company said Tuesday.

Cotality also estimated that hail bigger than an inch in diameter affected over 40,000 properties across the nation from May 15 to 18.

The outbreak is “likely the costliest severe weather event of 2025, with extensive damage to residential and commercial properties, as well as infrastructure,” reinsurance broker Guy Carpenter LLC said Tuesday.

Damages from this event will likely put the season above average in terms of insured losses, Guy Carpenter said. Since 1990, 25 severe convective storm events have resulted in losses of $4 billion or more, adjusted for inflation, according to the firm. Most of these events result in from $4 billion to $6 billion in losses, with about a quarter exceeding $6 billion.

AccuWeather Global Weather Center said Monday that the severe multiday weather outbreak, which produced dozens of destructive tornadoes across the central United States, caused an estimated $9 billion to $11 billion in total damage and economic loss, according to preliminary estimates.

AccuWeather meteorologists said the outbreak began May 15, intensified the next afternoon and into the overnight and early-morning hours of May 17. Large tornadoes were confirmed in Missouri, Kentucky, Illinois and Indiana.

This year is shaping up to be the worst for tornadoes in the U.S. in more than a decade, according to AccuWeather. There have been more than 820 preliminary reports of tornadoes so far this year, roughly 200 more than the historical average for this time of year.

Guy Carpenter said tornado activity across the U.S. has been “well above average in 2025” and that severe weather activity is expected to persist through mid-June.