How does hurricane damage typically increase with hurricane intensity?
Although widely varying, there is a general relationship. On average, hurricane damage increases about four times for every increase of Saffir/Simpson category number. A category 3 cyclone will typically have about four times the damage of a category 2 cyclone. A category 4-5 cyclone (no distinction is made between category 4 and 5 cyclones) typically has about 16 times the damage of a category 2 cyclone. But individual cyclones can vary greatly from this relationship.
