Hurricane Andrew
| Category 5 major hurricane (SSHWS/NWS) | |
Hurricane Andrew at peak intensity
|
|
| Formed | August 16, 1992 |
|---|---|
| Dissipated | August 28, 1992 |
| Highest winds |
1-minute sustained: 175 mph (280 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 922 mbar (hPa); 27.23 inHg |
| Fatalities | 65 |
| Damage | $26.5 billion (2016 USD) (Fifth costliest tropical cyclone in U.S. history) |
| Areas affected | The Bahamas; South Florida, Louisiana, and other areas of the Southern United States |
| Part of the 1992 Atlantic hurricane season | |
|
|
|
Hurricane Andrew was, at the time of its occurrence in August 1992, the most destructive hurricane in United States history. It caused major damage in the Bahamas and Louisiana, but the greatest impact was in South Florida, where it made landfall at Category 5 hurricane intensity on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane scale, with wind speeds up to 165 mph (270 km/h). Passing directly through the town of Homestead, Florida, a city south of Miami, Andrew obliterated entire blocks of homes, in many cases leaving only the concrete foundations. Over 25,000 houses were destroyed in Miami-Dade County alone, and nearly 100,000 more were severely damaged. 65 people were killed and the damage total across the affected regions exceeded $26 billion (1992 USD).
Andrew originated from a tropical wave over the central Atlantic, becoming the fourth tropical cyclone and the first hurricane of the 1992 Atlantic hurricane season. Initially, strong wind shear prevented much intensification, but after turning westward, Andrew entered a stage of rapid intensification; it peaked as a powerful Category 5 hurricane near the Bahamas on August 23. Though it briefly weakened to Category 4 strength while traversing the island nation, Andrew regained its Category 5 status before making two separate landfalls in South Florida—the first on Elliott Key and the second in Homestead (pressure at the Elliott Key were 926mb and dropped further to 922mb on its Homestead landfall). In Miami-Dade County alone, damage was originally estimated at $25 billion (1992 USD). Several hours later, the hurricane emerged over the Gulf of Mexico at Category 4 strength, with the Gulf Coast of the United States in its projected path. After weakening slightly, Andrew moved ashore near Morgan City, Louisiana, as low-end Category 3 storm. The effects of land caused the small hurricane to rapidly lose its intensity, and it diminished to a depression by August 27 while crossing Mississippi. The next day, Andrew merged with a frontal system over the southern Appalachian Mountains.
...
Wikipedia