Hurricane Erika (1997) - Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia20150421201613

Category 3 major hurricane (SSHWS/NWS)

Hurricane Erika to the north of the Lesser Antilles onSeptember 8

Formed September 3, 1997Dissipated September 20, 1997

(Extratropical after September 14, 1997)Highest winds 1-minute sustained:

125 mph (205 km/h)Lowest pressure 946 mbar (hPa); 27.94 inHgFatalities 2 directDamage $10 million (1997 USD)Areas affected Leeward Islands, Puerto Rico,

AzoresPart of the 1997 Atlantic hurricane season

Hurricane Erika

Hurricane Erika (1997)From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hurricane Erika was the strongest and longest-lastingtropical cyclone in the 1997 Atlantic hurricane season. Itdeveloped from a tropical wave on September 3 andmoved west-northwestward across the tropical AtlanticOcean, steadily intensifying until it attained hurricanestatus on September 4, becoming the fifth named stormand third hurricane of the season. Erika passed a shortdistance to the north of the Lesser Antilles, and laterturned to the north in response to an approaching trough.The hurricane quickly strengthened to become the onlymajor hurricane of the season, reaching maximumsustained winds of 125 mph (205 km/h) on September 8;after maintaining its peak strength for 24 hours, Erikabegan to weaken as it passed over cooler waters. It turnedto the east, weakened to a tropical storm, and becameextratropical after passing near the Azores archipelago.

The hurricane produced light rainfall and windsthroughout the northern Lesser Antilles. The passage ofErika carried a cloud of volcanic ash to Antigua from theeruption of the Soufrire Hills Volcano on Montserrat, arare occurrence. Strong waves from the hurricaneproduced beach erosion and coastal flooding in northernPuerto Rico, and caused the death of two surfers.Moderate wind gusts in the northern Leeward Islands andPuerto Rico left thousands of residents without power,and resulted in $10 million (1997 USD, $12.6 million 2006USD) in damage in the U.S. Caribbean territories. Erikaalso produced gusty winds and light rain in the Azores. Erika was the only tropical cyclone in the AtlanticOcean in the months of August and September, the first occurrence of such event in an Atlantic hurricaneseason since 1929.[1]

Contents

1 Meteorological history2 Preparations3 Impact4 See also5 References6 External links

Meteorological history

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Hurricane Erika (1997) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hurricane_Erika_(1997)&pr...

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Map plotting the track andintensity of the storm accordingto the SaffirSimpsonhurricane wind scale

Erika near the Lesser Antilles

A large tropical wave, which eventually became Erika, moved off the coastof Africa on August 31. Shortly after leaving the coast, it displayed a largelow-level circulation, though as it tracked westward, the circulation failedto contract significantly. It slowly organized, and by September 3 theconvection within the circulation had sufficiently organized for the systemto be classified as Tropical Depression Six, while located about 1150 miles(1850 km) east of the southernmost Lesser Antilles. The depression movedwest-northwestward at approximately 20 mph (32 km/h) under theinfluence of a well-established subtropical ridge, and late on September 3the system intensified into a tropical storm. At that time, the NationalHurricane Center in Miami gave the storm the name of Erika.[2]

Erika continued to the west-northwest, and in the early hours of September4, an eye-like feature appeared to have developed in the center of the deep

convection. The feature was not an eye, though, as visible satellite imagery revealed a center partiallyexposed from the convection. Despite unfavorable wind shear, Erika strengthened further and intensifiedinto a hurricane late on September 4, while located 530 miles (850 km) east-southeast of Guadeloupe. Deepconvection re-developed near the center, and the hurricane slowly strengthened as it continuedwest-northwestward. Hurricane Erika decelerated its forward motion as it approached the Lesser Antilles,and passed within 85 miles (135 km) of the islands as a Category 1 hurricane. An approaching troughweakened the subtropical ridge, resulting in Erika turning to the north and later to the northeast. OnSeptember 7, Erika began to quickly intensify, and the hurricane reached its peak strength of 125 mph(205 km/h) on September 8, while located about 350 miles (565 km) north of the Lesser Antilles. Erikamaintained peak intensity for about 24 hours before weakening over cooler waters.[2]

After passing about 350 miles (565 km) east of Bermuda on September 10, Erika turned to the east-northeastin response to westerly steering currents. Increased upper-level wind shear weakened the hurricane to atropical storm on September 12. Erika continued to weaken as it turned to the east-southeast, though itmaintained deep convection near the center despite unfavorable atmospheric conditions. On September 14the storm turned to the northeast again, and re-strengthened to reach winds of 70 mph (110 km/h) whilelocated 510 miles (820 km) west-southwest of the Azores. On September 15 Erika passed near the westernAzores islands, and quickly weakened as deep convection diminished. Erika became an extratropicalcyclone on September 16 north of the Azores, and after executing a clockwise loop, the extratropical stormdissipated on September 19 about 230 miles (370 km) southwest of Ireland.[2]

PreparationsEarly in the storm's development, forecasting Erika's motion was difficult,with a persistent leftward bias in official forecasts. In response to Erika'sthreat, the government of Saint Martin first issued a tropical storm warninglate on September 4. The next day, the respective governments of Antigua,Montserrat, Barbuda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Anguilla, Dominica,Guadeloupe, and Saint Barthlemy issued tropical storm warnings for theirislands. When Erika's motion resulted in a path that would take it closer tothe islands, all of the aforementioned islands excluding Guadeloupeupgraded the tropical storm warning to a hurricane warning. In addition, ahurricane watch was issued for the British and United States Virgin Islands,as well as Puerto Rico. In public advisories, the National Hurricane Center stated tropical storm conditionswere likely to be experienced in the Azores.[2] Early forecasts anticipated a threat to the island ofBermuda.[3]

The governments of the islands in the predicted path of Erika urged residents to quickly prepare for the


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hurricane through radio addresses. In the wake of busy seasons in 1995 and 1996, which some islands werestill recovering from, emergency preparations began.[4] In Puerto Rico, fishermen secured their boats inpreparation for the storm. Also on the island, citizens formed long lines at gas stations and purchasedemergency supplies. Officials in Anguilla enacted a plan that would turn off the island's power supply if thewinds exceeded 50 mph (80 km/h).[5] As a precaution, authorities on Saint Martin enacted a curfew for allbut those in service jobs.[6]

ImpactHurricane Erika produced strong waves and high low-level winds throughout the Lesser Antilles. Just weeksafter the eruption of the Soufrire Hills Volcano on Montserrat, the storm blew a cloud of falling ash overAntigua. Tropical storm-force winds affected several of the islands in the Lesser Antilles.[2]

Winds from Hurricane Erika peaked at 37 mph (60 km/h) with a gust of 47 mph (76 km/h) in the Cyril E.King Airport on Saint Thomas. The outer rainbands produced light to moderate rainfall in the Virgin Islands,peaking at 3.28 inches (83 mm) at the University of the Virgin Islands in Saint Thomas and 1.32 inches(36 mm) in Saint John. The precipitation produced localized street flooding, while the combination of windsand rain caused power interruptions. Offshore, strong waves capsized one dinghy and broke a 50-foot (15 m)boat from its moorings.[7] On Saint Croix, the hurricane produced sustained winds of 25 mph (40 km/h) anda peak wind gust of 29 mph (46 km/h) at the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport. Rainfall on the island was light,peaking at 0.83 inches (21 mm) at Christiansted. The wind gusts downed a few power lines, and damage wasminor.[8]

The outer rainbands of Erika passed over Puerto Rico, producing maximum sustained winds of 23 mph(37 km/h) and a peak wind gust of 42 mph (68 km/h) at the Luis Muoz Marn International Airport. Thewind gusts snapped tree branches into power lines, leaving up to 12,000 people without power in San Juan,Guaynabo and Bayamn. Rainfall was light on the island, with Caguas reporting a peak total of 0.77 inches(20 mm). The hurricane produced swells of 10 to 12 ft (3 to 3.7 m) on the northern coast of Puerto Rico,causing beach erosion or coastal flooding. One road was closed when sections of it were flooded or washedout. The strong waves forced the evacuation of eight families in the northern portion of the island.[9] Thestrong waves killed two surfers in the northeastern waters of the island.[2] Damage in Puerto Rico and theU.S. Virgin Islands totaled to $10 million (1997 USD, $12.6 million 2006 USD) in a preliminary estimate.[10]

Thirty-one ships encountered Erika from September 4, when it was a tropical storm, to September 18, whenit was extratropical. Two recorded hurricane force winds, with a peak wind report of 99 mph (159 km/h).The lowest recorded pressure by a ship was 1000.4 mbar (29.542 inHg) while located 105 miles (170 km)from Erika as an extratropical storm. The lowest recorded pressure while Erika was a tropical cyclone was1000.5 mbar (29.545 inHg) while located 190 miles (305 km) from the center. While passing near theAzores, Tropical Storm Erika produced maximum sustained winds of 30 mph (48 km/h) at Lajes Field. Gustswere much stronger, with a report of 87 mph (140 km/h) in Flores. In addition, a 200 ft (61 m) tower onLajes recorded a gust of 105 mph (169 km/h). The storm dropped up to 2.35 inches (60 mm) of rain inFlores[2] and produced rough seas throughout the archipelago. Damage, if any, is unknown in the Azores.[10]

See also

List of tropical cyclonesHurricane FabianHurricane IgorHurricane Gonzalo


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Wikimedia Commons hasmedia related to HurricaneErika (1997).

References

Miles Lawrence (1997-10-01). "SeptemberMonthly Tropical Weather Summary"(http://mpittweather.com/txt/sept97atl.txt) (TXT).National Hurricane Center. Retrieved 2006-11-12.

1.

Miles B. Lawrence (1997-10-24). "Hurricane ErikaTropical Cyclone Report"(http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/1997erika.html).National Hurricane Center. Retrieved 2011-10-25.

2.

Reuters (1997-09-10). "Hurricane Erika Swirls outover Atlantic" (http://web.archive.org/web/20060311064346/http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/ACOS-64CTN5?OpenDocument). Archived from theoriginal (http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/ACOS-64CTN5?OpenDocument) on2006-03-11. Retrieved 2006-11-12.

3.

Michelle Faul (1997-09-06). "Hurricane ErikaHeaded for Montserrat, Antigua"(http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/165298/).Associated Press. Retrieved 2011-10-25.

4.

Syracuse Post-Standard (1997-09-06). "Islanders,yachters prepare for the wrath of Hurricane Erika".

5.

Suzanne Gordon (1997-09-06). "Hurricane ErikaSpares Leeward Islands" (http://web.archive.org/web/20070927185134/http://wwwnotes.reliefweb.int/w/rwb.nsf/480fa8736b88bbc3c12564f6004c8ad5/6c8c1b8ea3bd925bc125650c004e5a97?OpenDocument). Reuters. Archived from the original(http://wwwnotes.reliefweb.int/w/rwb.nsf/480fa8736b88bbc3c12564f6004c8ad5/6c8c1b8ea3bd925bc125650c004e5a97?OpenDocument) on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2006-11-12.

6.

National Climatic Data Center (1997). "EventReport for the Virgin Islands"(http://www4.ncdc.noaa.gov/cgi-win/wwcgi.dll?wwevent~ShowEvent~315261).Retrieved 2006-11-11.

7.

National Climatic Data Center (1997). "EventReport for St. Croix" (http://www4.ncdc.noaa.gov/cgi-win/wwcgi.dll?wwevent~ShowEvent~315262).Retrieved 2006-11-11.

8.

National Climatic Data Center (1997). "EventReport for Puerto Rico"(http://www4.ncdc.noaa.gov/cgi-win/wwcgi.dll?wwevent~ShowEvent~315259).Retrieved 2006-11-11.

9.

Usatoday.com (1999-06-11). "Erika swipesCaribbean, hits Azores"(http://www.webcitation.org/5ybqzB7B1). USAToday. Archived from the original(http://www.usatoday.com/weather/werika.htm) on2011-05-11. Retrieved 2006-11-12.

10.

External links

Hurricane Erika Tropical Cyclone Report(http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/1997erika.html)

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hurricane_Erika_(1997)&oldid=657553356"

Categories: 1997 Atlantic hurricane season Category 3 Atlantic hurricanesHurricanes in the Leeward Islands Hurricanes in the British Virgin Islands Hurricanes in the Azores


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