Fewer People Dying in Disasters Despite Stronger Storms

Something weird is happening with extreme weather. Storms are getting nastier, floods are getting deeper, but way fewer people are dying.

Only 2,200 people have died from weather disasters worldwide so far this year. Last year at this time? 10,000. That's a massive drop even though we've already had over a dozen billion-dollar disasters in the U.S. alone.

The economic damage keeps climbing—$162 billion and counting in 2025. But deaths keep falling. We've gone from half a million weather deaths annually in 1920 to under 40,000 by 2020. That's a 90% drop while storms got worse.

What Changed

Simple stuff saves lives. Weather alerts on phones mean people actually know a hurricane's coming. Better buildings don't collapse as easily. Richer countries can afford evacuation buses and emergency shelters. When storms hit now, people are usually already gone.