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Hurricane Case Studies
Outline
• North Atlantic• Caribbean• Gulf of Mexico• Atlantic Coast• Pacific • Bangladesh
North Atlantic-Caribbean-Gulf of
Mexico• ~4-20 tropical storms/hurricanes each year
• Tend to form in late summer (highest sea temps)
# hurricanes 1931-1980
North Atlantic-Caribbean-Gulf of
Mexico
North Atlantic-Caribbean-Gulf of
Mexico• 2 main locations for origin
– Western Africa (Cape Verde type)– Caribbean sea
Cape Verde Type
• Start at low pressure systems in western Africa, hit warm water off coast
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Cape Verde Type
• Strengthen over warm water, move W/NW because of trade winds, Coriolis force
• Bermuda High: commonly observed pressure system affects path– Small: storms go north– Big: can push storms into Florida, up East Coast
Example: Andrew 1992
• Most destructive (costly) in U.S. history– $30 billion damage
• 3rd strongest in 20th century
Andrew 1992
• Hit S. Florida first– 33 dead– 80,000 buildings destroyed– Trees, cars demolished
• Moved into Gulf of Mexico– Picked up strength with warm water– Hit LA
• 15 dead, significant environmental impacts
– Heavy rain in MS
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Time lapse satellite image over 3 days of Andrew moving west to east
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Radar image at landfall
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Caribbean Sea
• Form in very warm water• Convergence zone of trade winds at equator– Important because convergence means low pressure, tropical depression can form
Example: Mitch 1998
Mitch 1998
• Began in Caribbean Sea• Formed quickly to Category 5 hurricane– Stayed that way for 33 hours
• Headed towards Central America, but stalled– Stayed offshore for 2 days, weakened– Good: didn’t hit coast of Honduras with full force
– Bad: dumped 2-6 ft of rain
Results of Mitch 1998
• Honduras– 6500 fatalities– 20% population homeless– 60% roads/bridges destroyed
• Nicaragua– 3800 fatalities– Lahars from flooding of volcanic lake
• Moved out to Gulf, hit S. Florida on to north of England
• Total: 11,000 fatalities
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QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
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Gulf of Mexico Hurricanes
• Along coast: low elevation land
• Along TX coastline, almost 6000 mi2 is less than 20 ft above sea level
• Significant problem for storm surges
Galveston, 1900
• Deadliest natural disaster in U.S. history
• Town on low-lying island in front of bay• Category 4 storm hit; flooded island several ft
• Storm waves, wind destroyed 3600 buildings
• Bridges washed out• Over 7000 fatalities (roughly 1 in 6 residents)
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Atlantic Coast - Hugo 1989
• Category 4 storm• 17 ft surge in Ft. Sumter, SC• Moved into NC, WV, OH, PA, NY, Canada as rain
• Only 11 fatalities
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2004 Events
• 15 tropical storms in North Atlantic during the 2004 hurricane season. – Nine of these became hurricanes
• six becoming major hurricanes (Category 3+) • Ivan strongest (Category 5)
2004 Storms• http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2004/hurricanes/interactive/hurricane.paths/index.html
2004 was predicted to be an “active” season with 12-15 tropical storms
FEMA distributed a record $4.85 billion in hurricane relief in 2004
4 hurricanes hit Florida, a record for the state
1 in 5 homes in Florida damaged
117 fatalities in FL alone
Hurricane Charley
• Landfall near Ft. Myers, FL as Cat. 4 storm on Aug 13th
• 16 fatalties, 2 million lost power• Damage likely ~$10 billion• Made 2nd landfall along S.Carolina• Maintained tropical storm force winds through New England (few inches of rain there)
Charley
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Hurricane Frances
• Reached Cat. 4 status over Bahamas (Aug 28)
• Hit east coast of Florida as Cat. 2 (Sept5), traveled over state, made 2nd landfall on panhandle as tropical storm
• Traveled north, dropping heavy rains– Quebec got over 8 inches of rain!– Also spawned 117 tornadoes– 23 fatalities
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Hurricane Frances
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Hurricane Ivan
• Category 5 storm over Grenada, Cayman Islands (Sept 7-9)
• Landfall as Cat. 3 in Alabama• Wacky path - went northeast, then back southwest to cross Florida, Gulf of Mexico on Sept 21 (strengthened back to tropical storm), 2nd landfall in LA on 24th
• Significant rain, flooding (U.S. deaths ~50, more across the Caribbean)
Hurricane Ivan
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Hurricane Jeanne
• Formed on Sept. 13, weakened by Sept. 18th, strengthened by 19th and headed out to sea, turned back towards U.S. by 24th
• Significant fatalities in Haiti (over 3000) from flooding and mudslides
• Landfall in U.S. in FL as Cat. 3 on Sept 26th (almost same location as Frances)
• Tracked into mid-Atlantic states• Flooding, 10 fatalities in US
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Pacific Coast
• ~15% of events form in Pacific offshore Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador
• Less hit land than Atlantic hurricanes– Why?
•Trade winds push westward, away from land•Colder water in Pacific reduces potential (California current brings cold water from Alaska)
Pauline, 1997
• Category 4 storm
• Main problem: rain caused flooding and debris flows
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Iniki, 1992
• Category 4 storm hit Kauai, HI
• Significant building damage $2 billion
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Bangladesh
• Cyclones in this area: Most deadly events
• Densely populated area on low-lying deltas– 35% of country is < 20 ft elevation– In average year, 20% is flooded
• Cyclones are common– ~5/year
Bangladesh
• 1970 ~category 5 storm 400,000 fatalities
• 1991 140,000 fatalities, 10 million homeless
• Population expected to double in next 30 years!
Next Time
• Coastal Hazards
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