Are Hurricanes with Female Names More Severe or Costly than Male-Named Hurricanes?

Abstract

In 2014, researchers concluded that hurricanes with female names were deadlier than male-named hurricanes. The analysis used data on hurricanes over six decades that included a period of time when only female names were used. In this paper, the author examines all hurricanes (with alternating female and male names) along the Atlantic Coast and the Gulf of Mexico from 1979 to 2021. The analysis shows that hurricanes with female names are no more severe (in terms of maximum wind speed or barometric pressure) than male-named hurricanes. Moreover, hurricanes with female names have not resulted in damage with higher average estimated costs than their male counterparts.