All that broken stuff has to be fixed/replaced. That stimulates the economy.
What is the broken window fallacy?THE BROKEN WINDOWA: The broken window fallacy was first expressed by the great French economist, Frederic Bastiat. Bastiat used the parable of a broken window to point out why destruction doesn't benefit the economy. In Bastiat's tale, a man's son breaks a pane of glass, meaning the man will have to pay to replace it.
When we arrive at this unexpected conclusion: "Society loses the value of things which are uselessly destroyed;" and we must assent to a maxim which will make the hair of protectionists stand on end — To break, to spoil, to waste, is not to encourage national labour; or, more briefly, "destruction is not profit."
But that’s through ACTIVELY breaking, not passively via natural disaster.
After Irma hits, the new southern reconstruction will power the Gulf economy for years.