List of disasters by cost - wikipedia List of disasters by cost This article is incomplete. Please help to improve it, or discuss the issue on the talk page. ( September 2017 ) Disasters can be particularly notable for the high costs associated with responding to and recovering from them. This page lists the economic costs of relatively recent disasters. 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Japan : estimated more than $300 billion. Great Hanshin earthquake, Japan, January 1995 : $200 billion. 2008 Sichuan earthquake, China, $148 billion Hurricane Katrina, United States, August 2005 : insurances compensated $45 billion. Total property damage is estimated at around $118 billion. Hurricane Sandy, multiple nations, October 2012, $75 billion. Hurricane Harvey, United States, August 2017, estimated $70 - $190 billion. Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Gulf of Mexico, 2010 : Between $60 and $100 billion. Hurricane Irma, multiple nations, August to September 2017, estimated upwards of $62 billion. 1988 -- 89 North American drought : $60 billion. 2011 Thailand floods : $45.7 billion ( World Bank estimate of total economic damages and losses ). 2011 Christchurch earthquake, New Zealand, $40 billion. Hurricane Ike, multiple nations, September 2008, $37.5 billion. Hurricane Wilma, multiple nations, October 2005, $29.4 billion. 2004 Chūetsu earthquake, Japan, October 2004 : $28 billion. Hurricane Andrew, United States, August 1992 : $25 billion. Hurricane Ivan, multiple nations, September 2004 : $23.3 billion. September 11 terrorist attacks, 2001 : $20.7 billion. 1994 Northridge earthquake, CA, United States, January 1994 : $20 billion. 1999 İzmit earthquake, Turkey, August 1999 : $20 billion. Hurricane Irene, multiple nations, August 2011 : $16.6 billion. Hurricane Charley, multiple nations, August 2004 : $16.3 billion. 2012 Northern Italy earthquakes, Emilia, Italy, May 2012 : $15.8 billion. Hurricane Matthew, multiple nations, September - October 2016 : $15.09 billion. Chernobyl disaster, 1986 : $15 billion estimated cost of direct loss. It is estimated that the damages could accumulate to € 235 billion for Ukraine and € 201 billion for Belarus in the thirty years following the accident. 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, many nations : $15 billion. Hurricane Rita, multiple nations, September 2005 : $12 billion. Hurricane Hugo, multiple nations, September 1989 : $10 billion. Typhoon Mireille, Japan, September - October 1991 : $10 billion. Hurricane Frances, multiple nations, August - September 2004 : $9.8 billion. Hurricane Georges, multiple nations, September - October 1998 : $9.72 billion. Tropical Storm Allison, United States, June 2001 : $9 billion. 2016 Fort McMurray Wildfire, Canada, estimated $8.86 - 9.9 billion. ( Direct and indirect costs ) 2010 Haiti earthquake, Haiti, estimated $7.8 - 8.5 billion. Hurricane Jeanne, multiple nations, September 2004 : $7.66 billion. Hurricane Gilbert, multiple nations, September 1988 : $7.1 billion. Armero tragedy, Colombia, 1985, $7 billion. Hurricane Floyd, multiple nations, September 1999 : $6.9 billion. Hurricane Gustav, multiple nations, August - September 2008 : $6.61 billion. Hurricane Mitch, multiple nations, October - November 1998 : $6.2 billion. Hurricane Isabel, United States, September 2003 : $5.37 billion. Hurricane Opal, multiple nations, September - October 1995 : $5.1 billion. Hurricane Manuel, Mexico, September 2013 : $4.2 billion. 2013 Alberta floods, Canada, 2013, estimated $3 billion - $5 billion. 2011 Joplin tornado, Missouri, May 2011 : $2.8 billion. Cyclone Tracy, Darwin, Australia, December 1974 : $2.64 billion. Exxon Valdez oil spill, 1989 : The clean - up of the oil spill cost an estimated $2.5 billion ; recovery for settlements, $1.1 billion ; and the economic loss ( fisheries, tourism, etc. ) suffered due to the damage to the Alaskan ecosystem was estimated at $2.8 billion. Cedar Fire, United States, 2003, $2 billion. AZF chemical plant explosion, Toulouse, France, 2001 : € 1.8 billion. 2011 Slave Lake wildfire, Canada, $1.8 billion. The costs of disasters vary considerably depending on a range of factors, such as the geographical location where they occur. When a disaster occurs in a densely populated area in a wealthy country, the financial damage might be huge, but when a comparable disaster occurs in a densely populated area in a poorer country, the actual financial damage might be relatively small, in part due to a lack of insurance. For example, the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, with a death toll of over 230,000 people, cost a ' mere ' $15 billion, whereas in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, in which 11 people died, the damages were six-fold. Disasters portal References Jump up ^ John Pike. `` Japan Tsunami Damage Cost Could Top $300 Billion ''. Retrieved 15 November 2014. Jump up ^ http://cidbimena.desastres.hn/docum/crid/Abril2006/CD2/pdf/eng/doc8691/doc8691-a.pdf Jump up ^ `` FACTBOX - China 's recent measures to spur growth ''. News.alibaba.com. November 6, 2008. Retrieved November 2, 2009. Jump up ^ `` Nuclear industry : Face your demons - towards full liability for nuclear power plant operators '' ( PDF ). Friends of the Earth Europe. Retrieved 15 November 2014. Jump up ^ Hurricane / Post-Tropical Cyclone Sandy, October 22 -- 29, 2012 ( PDF ) ( Service Assessment ). United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 's National Weather Service. May 2013. p. 10. 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Question: what was the costliest natural disaster in u.s. history
Answer: Hurricane Harvey