Hurricane Andrew facts for kids
Hurricane Andrew nearing the Bahamas at peak intensity on August 23
|
|
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Formed | August 16, 1992 |
| Extratropical | August 28, 1992 |
| Dissipated | August 29, 1992 |
| Category 5 tropical cyclone | |
| 1-minute sustained (SSHWS/NWS) | |
| Highest winds | 175 mph (280 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 922 mbar (hPa); 27.23 inHg |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | 65 total |
| Damage | $27.3 billion (1992 USD) (Costliest tropical cyclone on record at the time) |
| Areas affected | |
|
Part of the 1992 Atlantic hurricane season |
|
Hurricane Andrew was a very small but extremely fierce tropical cyclone that struck in August 1992. It became one of the most famous and destructive storms in American history. Andrew made landfall as a Category 5 storm on the Saffir–Simpson scale. It was one of only four Category 5 storms ever known to strike the mainland United States. The others were the 1935 Labor Day hurricane, Hurricane Camille in 1969, and Hurricane Michael in 2018. Andrew caused giant problems across The Bahamas, South Florida, and Louisiana. It smashed through neighborhoods, ripped roofs off houses, and knocked out electrical power for over a million people.
The storm started out as a weak weather system over the Atlantic Ocean. It quickly grew into a massive monster with wind gusts reaching 177 mph (285 km/h). Cities like Homestead and Florida City suffered terrible destruction. Thousands of families lost their homes, and whole communities had to be rebuilt from scratch. In total, the hurricane caused billions of dollars in losses and took 65 lives. Because of its incredible power, Andrew taught scientists and builders important lessons about preparing for extreme weather.
Contents
How Hurricane Andrew Formed and Moved Across the Sea
Hurricane Andrew began its journey on August 14, 1992, as a tropical wave near Africa. A high-pressure weather ridge pushed the wave westward across the warm ocean waters. Thunderstorm activity clustered near the Cape Verde islands. Soon, expert weather scientists tracked the system using satellite images and the Dvorak technique. Clouds began swirling into spiral rainbands around a growing center of circulation. On August 16, it officially became a tropical depression.
At first, harsh winds high in the atmosphere, known as wind shear, kept the storm from growing quickly. When those winds calmed down, the storm gained strength. The National Hurricane Center named the storm Andrew on August 17. By August 19, airplane crews known as hurricane hunters flew straight into the storm to inspect it. The storm looked messy, and its central barometric pressure rose. Soon after, an upper-level weather trough moved away, allowing Andrew to organize. Strong air outflow helped fuel the system.
A clear circular center, called an eye, formed rapidly in the middle of the storm. Andrew quickly achieved hurricane strength on August 22 near Nassau, Bahamas. Over very warm water, Andrew experienced quick strengthening. Its central pressure dropped fast, making the storm much more powerful. By August 23, Andrew reached Category 5 status, boasting maximum sustained wind speeds of 175 mph (282 km/h). The storm underwent an eyewall replacement cycle, which is a normal process where a storm replaces its inner ring of winds.
Andrew hit the island of Eleuthera in The Bahamas on August 23. It briefly weakened while crossing shallow waters, but it gathered extra energy over the warm Gulf Stream. On August 24, Andrew struck southern Florida at Elliott Key and Homestead with terrifying force. It raced across the state into the warm Gulf of Mexico. Andrew then curved northwest toward the Gulf Coast of the United States. It made a final landfall near Morgan City, Louisiana, on August 26. Andrew soon weakened into an extratropical cyclone over the Appalachian Mountains and merged with another frontal system.
Preparing Communities Before the Storm Arrived
Warnings in the Bahamas
Government leaders in the Bahamas acted early when they realized Andrew was heading their way. Forecasters issued a urgent hurricane watch across the northwest Bahamas, including Andros and Grand Bahama. Officials upgraded this to a hurricane warning as the storm drew closer. Communities opened 58 emergency shelters inside public schools and church buildings. Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham warned everyone to take the storm seriously. Helpful safety organizations like the Red Cross and the Royal Bahamas Defence Force worked together to protect families.
Safety Measures Across Florida
In Florida, experts tracked the storm closely using radar equipment like the National Weather Service radar in Miami. Forecasters warned people about dangerous ocean swells known as storm surge, along with torrential rain and tornadoes. Governor Lawton Chiles quickly declared an official state of emergency. He called in members of the Florida National Guard to direct traffic and run shelters.
Nearly 1.2 million Floridians packed their cars and left their homes to find safety. Families moved out of coastal counties, including Broward, Collier, and Dade County. Many tourists also cleared out of the Florida Keys. Thousands of cars filled major highways like Interstate 95, causing giant traffic jams. Major airports like Miami International Airport closed down, and the United States Coast Guard sent its ships out to safer open waters.
Defenses Along the Gulf Coast
When Andrew entered the Gulf of Mexico, leaders along the coast prepared for another hit. Oil companies pulled their workers off offshore drilling platforms. In Louisiana, Governor Edwin Edwards urged over a million people to evacuate inland. Workers shut 111 heavy metal floodgate units to stop floodwaters from entering the levees protecting New Orleans. The American Red Cross opened a huge public shelter at the Cajundome arena in Lafayette to feed and protect evacuees.
What Kind of Damage Did Hurricane Andrew Cause?
Template:Most intense US hurricanes
Devastation in the Bahamas
Andrew struck several island areas in the Bahamas, including Cat Cays, Berry Islands, and Bimini. Powerful winds damaged docks, communications networks, and fresh water lines. In the village of The Current on Eleuthera, a huge ocean surge wiped out more than half of the buildings. Strong winds snapped thousands of trees across the islands. About 800 homes were ruined, leaving 1,700 people temporarily without shelter.
Catastrophic Destruction in South Florida
South Florida took the absolute hardest punch from Hurricane Andrew. Fierce winds blasted through towns like Kendall, Cutler Bay, and Perrine. A weather station at the Turkey Point Nuclear Generating Station clocked sustained winds of 146 mph (235 km/h) before its instruments broke apart. In southern Dade County, the storm flattened whole rows of houses down to their concrete slabs. Over 90% of local mobile homes were completely shattered.
Public infrastructure suffered terribly. Winds knocked down thousands of miles of electric lines, leaving 1.4 million people in the dark for weeks. Farmland suffered heavily, losing valuable crops of avocados, mangoes, and limes. Even nature felt the impact. In the wild wetlands of the Everglades, ferocious winds knocked over millions of native trees. A breeding facility broke open during the chaos, allowing invasive Burmese pythons to escape into the wild and start living across the Everglades.
Wind, Waves, and Tornadoes in Louisiana
When Andrew reached Louisiana, it brought strong hurricane winds and pushed seawater into bays. High waves damaged dozens of oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. As the storm pushed onto land, its winds caused massive changes in the waters of the Atchafalaya Basin and Bayou Lafourche. This sudden event took oxygen out of the water, killing roughly 187 million freshwater fish. Andrew also spun off 14 dangerous twisters across Louisiana, including an F3 tornado that tore through homes in LaPlace.
Helping Communities Recover and Rebuild Better
Recovering from such a giant disaster was a huge challenge. President George H. W. Bush signed an enormous relief package passed by the United States Congress. This provided money for medical supplies, food assistance like food stamps, and rebuilding materials. International friends also helped out. The Government of Canada sent skilled military engineers to repair damaged schools and community hospitals.
The disaster showed that emergency systems needed urgent improvements. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, known as FEMA, faced public criticism for delivering supplies too slowly. Because so many houses had lost their roofs, engineers investigated what went wrong. Expert surveyor Timothy P. Marshall discovered that many builders had simply stapled weak shingles or poorly attached plywood to roof truss frames.
To keep families safe from future storms, officials wrote the tough new Florida Building Code. Under these rules, newly built homes must feature impact-resistant windows, extra metal straps to hold roofs securely, and reinforced walls. Later hurricanes, like Hurricane Charley and Hurricane Katrina, proved that houses built under these newer standards survived extreme winds much better.
Retiring the Storm Name
Because Hurricane Andrew brought so much terrible damage and changed so many lives, weather leaders decided its name should never be used again. In 1993, the World Meteorological Organization officially retired the name Andrew. Whenever a storm is exceptionally deadly or costly, its name is permanently retired out of respect for affected families. The name was later replaced by Alex on official storm lists. Today, scientists and emergency managers continue to study Andrew to build stronger, safer, and more resilient coastal cities.
Images for kids
-
Hurricane Andrew in the Gulf of Mexico on August 25
-
The last image from NWS Miami's radar before it was blown off by the storm
-
Damage from an F3 tornado spawned by Andrew in LaPlace
-
Rainfall summary of Hurricane Andrew in the United States
See also
In Spanish: Huracán Andrew para niños
