CoreLogic Ranks the Windiest Cities in the U.S.

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Jackson, Miss., is the windiest city in the nation, according to new data released by CoreLogic. Springfield, Mo., Boston and Cambridge, Mass., followed by Shreveport, La., rounded out the top five windiest cities.

The CoreLogic Windy City Ranking provides a national ranking of the nation’s windiest cities and is generated by calculating the total force caused by all severe wind gusts of 60 mph or more for every wind event dating back to 2006. The analysis, which also takes into account the total number of wind events, assigns a numerical score ranging from 1-100 to 293 cities analyzed with data captured at the city center plus a 10-mile radius.

Table 1 provides a top-ten ranking of the windiest cities over this nine-year timeframe, with Jackson recording a maximum wind speed of 99 mph and 153 separate wind events, putting it at the top. Despite being nicknamed ‘The Windy City,’ Chicago ranks 50th. When looking only at wind speeds over the nine-year timeframe, three cities surpassed wind speeds of 100 mph, including Reno (126 mph), Westminster, CO (108 mph) and Round Rock, TX (103 mph).

Table 1: Windy City Ranking (Jan 2006-June 2015)

Rank	City	State	CoreLogic Rankings	Number of Wind Events	Max Wind Speed	Date of Max Wind Speed
1	Jackson	Mississippi	95	153	99	4/4/08
2	Springfield	Missouri	92	128	97	1/7/08
3	Boston	Massachusetts	89	121	83	10/29/12
4	Cambridge	Massachusetts	88	116	83	10/29/12
5	Shreveport	Louisiana	87	108	77	7/26/13
6	High Point	North Carolina	86	110	76	3/28/10
7	Nashville	Tennessee	86	102	86	6/26/10
8	Gainesville	Florida	85	106	71	4/15/07
9	Columbia	South Carolina	85	101	73	7/17/07
10	Boulder	Colorado	85	79	108	6/6/07

The CoreLogic Windy City Ranking uses wind verification technology to evaluate wind speeds and distinct wind events in 293 U.S. cities with populations of 100,000 or more. Unlike traditional wind records, which rely on airport-based and private weather observation stations that record data only at one location, the wind verification technology captures wind data at a more property-specific level. The data is localized and geography-specific so that even cities which are very close together, such as Boston and Cambridge can be measured independently.

This ability to evaluate wind activity at the granular level helps improve the accuracy and timing of the costly insurance claims related to wind damage. Industry estimates indicate that wind damage represents 20 to 30 percent of all insurance claims each year. With such a significant percentage of insurance claims attributed to wind, the technology allows insurance professionals to verify if and when severe winds were detected at or near a specific location in order to make more precise damage assessments.

2015 Wind Analysis

For the first half of 2015, Reno recorded the highest wind speed at 119 mph and Jackson, Miss., recorded the most wind events at 14, as of June 2015 (Tables 2 and 3, respectively). The analysis also concludes that the highest straight-line wind speeds so far this year have been recorded on the West Coast, while the most wind events have occurred east of the Rocky Mountains. The cities with the strongest straight-line winds tend to be adjacent to large mountain ranges prone to winter wind storms, which although infrequent, can be powerful.

Table 2: U.S. Cities Ranked by Highest Wind Speed in 2015 (through June 30)

City	State	Wind Speed	Date
Reno	Nevada	119	2/6/15
Boulder	Colorado	87	1/5/15
Wichita	Kansas	86	4/2/15
Amarillo	Texas	84	6/14/15
Salt Lake City	Utah	84	4/14/15
Reno	Nevada	83	3/15/15
Sioux Falls	South Dakota	83	6/21/15
Oklahoma City	Oklahoma	81	5/16/15
Huntsville	Alabama	80	4/3/15
Norman	Oklahoma	80	5/16/15

Table 3: U.S. Cities Ranked by Total Number of Wind Events in 2015 (through June 30)

City	State	Count	Wind Speed	Date
Jackson	Mississippi	14	75	4/13/15
Jacksonville	Florida	10	71	6/13/15
Cincinnati	Ohio	8	72	4/9/15
Columbia	South Carolina	8	69	6/30/15
Norman	Oklahoma	8	80	5/16/15
Pittsburgh	Pennsylvania	8	71	5/29/15
Shreveport	Louisiana	8	73	5/25/15
Tallahassee	Florida	8	70	4/19/15
Charlotte	North Carolina	7	68	6/2/15
Dayton	Ohio	7	72	5/26/15

“When looking at various natural hazards and the risk they pose, wind doesn’t get as much attention as hurricanes, floods or wildfires which can cause widespread devastation in just a single event. However wind-related damage is a serious and ongoing risk with about a third of all claims related to wind and hail,” said Lindene Patton, global head of hazard product development for CoreLogic. “Reviewing wind activity over multiple years helps identify trends and provide further scientific data to inform insurance coverage which, in turn, better protects homeowners.”

Source: CoreLogic

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