wreak
v.v. to cause a lot of damage or destruction. You use this when something bad happens to a place or a person.
v. to cause extensive damage, destruction, or havoc. Often used in the passive voice to describe the effects of a natural disaster or a person's actions.
The storm will wreak havoc on the local farms.
The heavy rain will wreak havoc on the city's infrastructure if the drainage systems fail.
The sudden collapse of the financial market will wreak havoc on the global economy, leading to widespread unemployment and a sharp decline in consumer confidence.
From Middle English wreken, from Old English wrecan, from Proto-West Germanic wrekan, from Proto-Germanic wrekaną, from Proto-Indo-European *wreg- (“push, shove, drive, track down”). Cognate via Proto-Germanic with Dutch wreken, German rächen, Swedish vräka; cognate via PIE with Latin urgēre (English urge), and distantly cognate with English wreck.
From Middle English wreke, wrake, Northern Middle English variants of wreche, influenced later by Etymology 1, above. Compare Dutch wraak.