This year’s powerful storm season left a wake of destruction, but opportunities to rebuild abound as states move into hurricane construction, digging out from storm damage. Hurricanes Harvey and Irma caused economic losses in Texas and Florida of $168 billion, according to estimates in a report by Moody’s Analytics. As Texas and Florida residents recover from the storms, the Moody’s report expects “rebuilding activity to jump.”

In a CNBC interview, New York Federal Reserve President William Dudley said that hurricane construction leads to increased economic activity over the long run.

Dudley said the initial impact in both human and economic costs will be harmful. But in the long run, economies tend to snap back from such major events.

“Those effects tend to be pretty transitory,” Dudley said in a live interview with CNBC. “The long-run effect of these disasters unfortunately is it actually lifts economic activity because you have to rebuild all the things that have been damaged by the storms.”

BuildCentral’s ConstructionWire database tracks renovation projects of more than $500,000 in value in Texas and Florida, including many prompted by the hurricanes. There are currently 1,255 renovation projects in the planning or construction phases in Texas, and another 1,055 in Florida.

BuildCentral  provides detailed data on where and when construction projects are planned in the U.S. and profiles of the companies that are involved. The company’s database provides key contact information – names, phone numbers, email addresses – for companies to find each other, partner on projects or build longer-term working relationships. Call for a free test drive: 312-223-1600.