Josh Darr on speed, scale of Hurricane Helene
Josh describes conditions and impacts of the quickly developing storm.
In this interview with The Insurer TV, Guy Carpenter’s Josh Darr, Managing Director and Head of North America Peril Advisory, discusses how Hurricane Helene’s rapid escalation and widespread impact have set new records, prompting the insurance industry to assess the full scale of losses while considering the challenges presented by extreme weather.
Josh noted how Helene’s fast growth from a tropical storm into a Category 4 hurricane was heavily influenced by warmer-than-usual sea surface temperatures (SSTs). The Gulf of Mexico provided “optimal conditions” for Helene’s escalation, Josh said, further accelerated by a jet stream over the Ohio and the Mississippi River Valley.
“Helene was unique in that it produced devastating flooding far inland, particularly in the Appalachian Mountains,” Josh explained. “Warm SSTs and atmospheric moisture levels acted like a sponge, holding significant moisture and releasing it over a prolonged 4-to-5-day rainfall event. This led to record flooding in areas that don’t typically face such extreme conditions.”