Two destructive hurricanes — Helene and Milton — tore through Gulf Coast counties in Florida in fall 2024, causing tens of billions of dollars in damage. The storms also caused residents to leave, according to population estimates released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau.
Pinellas County lost almost 12,000 residents, the second most in the country, trailing only Los Angeles County, which has been losing population all decade. Pinellas County relies on migration for growth because deaths outpace births more than in any American county.
Taylor County, a tiny rural community ravaged by the hurricanes in the Big Bend area, had the steepest growth rate decline among U.S. counties last year, with a -2.2% drop…