Hurricane Betsy (1956)
| Category 3 major hurricane (SSHWS/NWS) | |
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Hurricane Betsy near landfall in southern Puerto Rico
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| Formed | August 9, 1956 |
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| Dissipated | August 18, 1956 |
| Highest winds |
1-minute sustained: 120 mph (195 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 954 mbar (hPa); 28.17 inHg |
| Fatalities | 36 total, excluding one indirect |
| Damage | $50 million (1965 USD) |
| Areas affected | Lesser Antilles, U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, Bahamas, East Coast of the United States |
| Part of the 1956 Atlantic hurricane season | |
Hurricane Betsy, known as Hurricane Santa Clara in Puerto Rico, was in 1956 the first North Atlantic hurricane to make landfall in Puerto Rico in 24 years. The third tropical cyclone of the 1956 Atlantic hurricane season, Betsy developed from a tropical wave on August 9 to the east of the Lesser Antilles. It rapidly developed into a 120 mph (195 km/h) major hurricane before striking Guadeloupe. There, Betsy heavily damaged 1000 houses and left severe crop destruction, and there were 18 deaths in the territory. As Betsy continued into the northeastern Caribbean, it capsized a ship, killing its crew of two.
On August 12, Betsy struck southeastern Puerto Rico and quickly crossed the island. Damage was heaviest where it moved ashore and in the territory's central portion, and throughout Puerto Rico there were 15,023 houses that were destroyed by Betsy. Multiple locations reported heavy crop damage, including Camuy which reported a complete loss of the corn crop. Hurricane Betsy was the first hurricane to be observed from the San Juan radar, and also resulted in the first hurricane warning on the island to be released on television. The hurricane left $40 million in damage and 16 deaths, which prompted a federally declared disaster area. Locally the hurricane was known as the Santa Clara Hurricane. After exiting Puerto Rico, Betsy brushed the Bahamas before turning northeastward, becoming extratropical on August 18. The remnants dissipated two days later to the south of Newfoundland.
Before Betsy's formation, the northeastward shift of the Azores High allowed for an increase in atmospheric instability across the tropical Atlantic, which made conditions for tropical cyclogenesis more favorable in early August. A tropical wave exited the west coast of Africa on August 4. On August 9, a ship reported rough seas and winds of force 10 on the Beaufort scale. On that basis, it is estimated that Tropical Storm Betsy developed that day about 835 mi (1345 km) east of Barbados. The next day, a Hurricane Hunters flight observed winds of 120 mph (190 km/h), which indicated that Betsy had intensified significantly overnight. The flight reported how small the hurricane was, including a 10 mi (16 km) wide eye. After maintaining that intensity for about 24 hours, Betsy began weakening, moving directly over Marie-Galante and southern Guadeloupe. It entered the eastern Caribbean with winds of 90 mph (150 km/h) before it began a track to the west-northwest.
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Wikipedia