Climate change migration: Where people are moving to escape wildfires, extreme flooding, and record heat

Extreme weather events, including hurricanes, wildfires, and dangerous heat, have increased not only in frequency, but also in intensity over the past few decades — and are predicted only to get worse.

For some Americans, this has prompted a reevaluation of where to call home. “Climate migration” is a broad term, as some people move out of fear of what the future holds, while others move because circumstances force them to. Still, already some Americans are choosing where to live based on safety from volatile weather.

When 2017’s Hurricane Irma destroyed a quarter of the Florida Keys’ housing stock, 50-year residents Connie and Glenn Faast were the only house in their neighborhood with a roof still intact. It prompted them to move and seek refuge in the mountains of North Carolina.

“We thought it would be devastating when we left,” Connie told Business Insider, “but when we pulled out of there, we were so, so relieved.”

There are no current statistics on how many Americans are moving because of climate change, but a recent Zillow survey found it is a growing concern for homeowners.

Over 80% of prospective homebuyers said climate risk impacted their search, Zillow found.

Rising insurance premiums have also brought climate-related issues to the kitchen table, as residents of high-risk states such as Florida, California, and Colorado contend with premiums that have doubled or tripled.

Insurance executive Oscar Seikaly told BI that reinsurance companies, which insure the insurance companies, used to be able to reliably predict the impact of a natural disaster. That’s not the case anymore.

“Predictions have not been as good as they should be in the last few years. Everything has been a surprise. They’re in panic mode,” he said.