The insured costs of Hurricane Melissa’s damages to onshore property in Jamaica now range between $2.2 billion and $4.2 billion, according to data firm Verisk Analytics Inc.
Wind is responsible for most of the modeled losses, along with floods caused by rain, Verisk said in a statement Monday.
Hurricane Melissa will likely cost Jamaica’s residents much more money. Less than 20% of the Caribbean island’s residential properties are insured, with a significant share lacking sufficient insurance, according to Verisk.
Melissa hit last week as a Category 5 hurricane, with winds of 185 miles per hour (298 kilometers per hour), and is considered one of the most intense storms of its kind to make landfall.
The hurricane destroyed 80% to 90% of roofs in some of the neighbourhoods in Saint Elizabeth parish, where Melissa made landfall, according to Verisk. In certain areas, every roof was destroyed.
Melissa left 28 people dead on the island, the nation’s prime minister, Andrew Holness, said over the weekend.