Flooded home collapsing Flooding and a damaged home are seen after Hurricane Harvey hit Rockport, Texas, on Saturday, Aug. 26, 2017. Photographer: Alex Scott/Bloomberg

If it seems that "once in a lifetime" storms, like Hurricanes Florence and Michael, are happening more often, you're right. According to the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters, catastrophic floods and storms have risen by 7.4% each year in recent decades. And not only are these 100-year weather events more frequent, but they are also costlier than ever. In 2018, Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria set a new U.S. annual record, causing more than $300 billion in direct damages, according to the National Centers for Environmental Information.

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