By Jennifer Whitlock
Field Editor

In 2021, there were 20 separate extreme weather events in the U.S. causing more than $1 billion in damage each, according to a recent report by the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Association (NOAA).

One drought, two floods, 11 severe storms, four tropical cyclones, one wildfire and one winter storm made 2021 the third-most costly year for weather-related damages and the second-most active year in terms of number of events, the report’s data shows.

“The U.S. experienced most all types of extremes that NOAA’s U.S. billion-dollar disaster analysis tracks,” NOAA climatologist and economist Adam Smith told DTN Progressive Farmer. “It was also surprising to have more extremes during December, including the tornado outbreaks, the derecho and the Colorado wildfire. Another surprise was that these extremes produced the highest fatality count for the contiguous U.S. in a decade since 2011.”

On the NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters webpage, the agency states the U.S. has sustained 310 weather and climate disasters since 1980 with damages and costs exceeding $2.155 trillion.

More than one-third of those costs–$742 billion—were incurred in just the past five years.

Last year was the seventh consecutive year in which $10 or more billion-dollar weather and climate disaster events impacted the U.S., noted Smith.

In February 2021, a winter storm hit Texans hard. While the total extent of damages is still being calculated one year later, it has been estimated Winter Storm Uri will be the costliest disaster in state history.

Texas agriculture suffered over $600 million in losses, with everything from livestock and dairies to citrus and vegetable crops affected by the statewide freezing temperatures.

The increase in the number of weather disasters concurs with a sustained increase in the average annual temperature, according to NOAA. In 2021, the average contiguous U.S. temperature was 54.5° Fahrenheit, which is 2.5° warmer than the 20th Century average and the fourth-warmest year in the 127 years on record. NOAA added the six warmest years on record have all occurred since 2012.