Hurricane Elena facts for kids
| Category 3 major hurricane (SSHWS/NWS) | |
Hurricane Elena in the Gulf of Mexico from Space Shuttle Discovery on September 1, 1985
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| Formed | August 28, 1985 |
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| Dissipated | September 4, 1985 |
| Highest winds | 1-minute sustained: 125 mph (205 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 953 mbar (hPa); 28.14 inHg |
| Fatalities | 0 direct, 4 indirect |
| Damage | $1.25 billion (1985 USD) |
| Areas affected | Cuba, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Mississippi Valley region |
| Part of the 1985 Atlantic hurricane season | |
Hurricane Elena was a category 3 major hurricane that caused heavy damage along the Gulf Coast of the United States in August and September of the 1985 Atlantic hurricane season.
Elena's unusual path through the Gulf of Mexico, which included a loop, caused many people to evacuate from the coastline.
Meteorological history
Before Hurricane Elena, there was a tropical wave that moved off the coast of Africa on August 23. It remained weak due to its fast westward motion and Saharan Air Layer around the circulation. As it moved through the Greater Antilles, it slowed and a tropical depression formed on August 28 between Cuba and Haiti. It paralleled the northern cost of Cuba, and became Tropical Storm Elena that night. Conditions were good for the storm to develop in the Gulf of Mexico, and Elena became a hurricane on the 29th.
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Tropical cyclones of the 1985 Atlantic hurricane season |
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Images for kids
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Geopotential height chart for the 500-millibar level, showing Elena (the closed isohypse over the Gulf of Mexico) on August 30. The trough that turned Elena toward the east can be seen embedded within the flow over the United States, and the ridge responsible for eventually pushing the storm back is denoted to the east of Florida.
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Hurricane Elena early on September 1, shortly before attaining peak intensity and accelerating to the west
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Hurricane Elena near the Florida coast on August 31
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Numerous coastal roads, such as this one along the Gulf Coast of Florida, were damaged by the hurricane's storm surge.
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Map of Florida's counties: click to enlarge
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Example of a beachfront structure destroyed by the hurricane in Florida
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The storm washed maritime debris, such as small vessels and parts of docks, over land.
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Satellite view of the hurricane's core on September 1, while traveling westward
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Elena making landfall in Mississippi on September 2
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Elena's storm total rainfall in the United States
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Tropical Storm Elena over Cuba on August 28
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Thousands of families required temporary housing after their homes were rendered unlivable.
See also
In Spanish: Huracán Elena (1985) para niños
