How might Florence compare with recent U.S. hurricanes?

Think back on some of the most devastating hurricanes of the past decade or so, and chances are the names Katrina, Harvey or Maria come to mind.

Forecasters warn approaching storm could be a lot like Harvey. And that's not good

CBC News · Posted: Sep 13, 2018 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: September 13, 2018

People across the southeastern U.S. have boarded up their homes and businesses ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Florence. (Randall Hill/Reuters)

Think back on some of the most devastating hurricanes of the past decade or so, and chances are the names Katrina, Harvey or Maria come to mind.

Katrina, which hit the southeastern U.S. in August 2005, is the costliest U.S. hurricane on record, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). It brought relatively little rain but many deaths, and led to broken levees that devastated New Orleans.

Katrina was a Category 3 storm when it made landfall. Forecasters believe Hurricane Florence could arrive as a slow-moving Category 2, hanging over some areas for prolonged periods and doing more damage, like Harvey in 2017. And it could be even worse, according to CBC meteorologist Johanna Wagstaffe.

"Given the size, strength, longevity and extremely rare track of Florence," she says, "whatever happens in the end will likely be outside of historical experience for much of mainland U.S."

Here's a look back at the five costliest U.S. hurricanes to date, and the toll they took. The figures come from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the NHC, except where indicated.

1. Katrina (August 2005)

Scores of families had to be rescued by boat in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina made landfall. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Damages: $161 billion

Deaths: 1,833 direct and indirect deaths are attributed to Katrina. But the NHC says the true number of direct deaths may never be known.

Some New Orleans residents were forced to climb to their roofs to await rescue by helicopter, as the water rose around them. (David J. Phillip/AFP/Getty Images)

Peak winds: 278 km/h

Highest total rainfall: 36 centimetres, at Homestead Air Force Base, Fla

Some people left desperate messages on their homes as they fled New Orleans. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

2. Harvey (August 2017)

One man called Harvey 'the most terrifying event of his life.' (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Damages: $125 billion

Deaths: At least 68

Tens of thousands of homes in Texas were completely destroyed by Harvey's intense winds. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Peak winds: 212 km/h

Highest total rainfall: 154 centimetres, near Nederland, Texas

Harvey dumped as much as 154 centimetres of rain on some parts of Texas. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

3. Maria (September 2017)

The entire island of Puerto Rico lost power in the wake of Hurricane Maria. And many parts had no electricity for months. (Hector Retamal/AFP/Getty Images)

Damages: $90 billion

Deaths: Initially, 64 deaths were attributed to Maria, most of them on Puerto Rico. But the island's governor raised the toll to 2,975 last month, based on research done by George Washington University.