Hurricane Fico facts for kids
Hurricane Fico was a powerful tropical cyclone that caused damage in Hawaii in 1978. It was one of the strongest storms of the 1978 Pacific hurricane season.
How Fico Formed and Traveled
A tropical depression started forming on July 7, 1978. The very next day, it grew into the sixth tropical storm of the season. At first, it moved towards the west-northwest.
By July 11, Fico became a very strong Category 4 hurricane. This means it had extremely fast winds. After staying at this strength for more than a day, Fico weakened. On July 14, it became a mid-range Category 1 hurricane.
But Fico didn't stay weak for long. The very next day, it grew strong again, reaching Category 4 strength once more. Its power went up and down, but Fico remained a major hurricane until July 17. Then, it moved into the central Pacific Ocean as a Category 1 storm.
Fico slowly got stronger again. By July 21, it was a major hurricane once more. At this point, Fico changed direction and started moving northwest. It slowly lost its strength. The storm became a tropical storm early on July 28. Later that same day, it changed into an extratropical storm. Its leftover parts later joined a weather system that moved towards the Aleutian Islands.
Fico was a tropical cyclone for 20 days. It traveled about 5,500 miles (9,000 km). Both of these were records at the time. It was also a hurricane for 17 days in a row. However, these records have since been broken by other storms like Hurricane Tina and Hurricane John.
Fico's Impact on Land
Even though Hurricane Fico never actually hit land directly, it still caused problems. It created huge waves, between 15 and 30 feet tall, that crashed onto the Big Island. These waves caused "considerable damage" [1] to roads and buildings along the coast.
Smaller waves also hit the southern shores of Maui, but they didn't cause much damage there. Six people on a small boat called a sloop were washed overboard, but they were rescued. A tugboat was pushed onto a reef at Kukuiula.
As Fico weakened, it also caused strong, gusty winds across the islands. These winds knocked over trees and led to power outages. The leftover parts of Fico also brought heavy rains and strong winds south of Cold Bay in the Aleutian Islands.
Because of the damage it caused, the name Fico was retired. This means it will not be used for another hurricane. The name Fabio replaced it in the 1982 season.
Images for kids
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Hurricane Fico on July 20, south of Hawaii
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