Hurricane Hugo
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| Category 5 hurricane (SSHS) | ||
|---|---|---|
 Hurricane Hugo off the coast of South Carolina |
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| Formed | September 9, 1989 | |
| Dissipated | September 25, 1989 | |
| Highest winds |
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| Lowest pressure | 918 mbar (hPa; 27.12 inHg) | |
| Fatalities | 76 direct | |
| Damage | $10 billion (1989 USD) $17.4 billion (2008 USD) |
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| Areas affected |
Guadeloupe, Montserrat, Dominica, British Virgin Islands, U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, North Carolina, most of eastern North America | |
| Part of the 1989 Atlantic hurricane season |
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Hurricane Hugo was a destructive Category 5 hurricane that struck Guadeloupe, Montserrat, Puerto Rico, St. Croix, South Carolina and North Carolina in September of the 1989 Atlantic hurricane season, killing 82 people and leaving 56,000 homeless.
Hugo developed from a tropical wave that moved off the coast of Africa on September 9. The storm tracked westward, and became a tropical storm on the 11, and a hurricane on the 13. It reached its peak intensity as a category 5 hurricane, and moved toward the United States. Hugo made landfall in South Carolina as a category 4.
The storm caused $10 billion (1989 USD, $16.3 billion (2006 USD) in damages, making it the most damaging hurricane ever recorded up to that time, surpassing Hurricane Frederic. Hugo was itself surpassed by Hurricane Andrew three years later, which was eventually surpassed by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
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[edit] Storm history
Hugo's origins were from a cluster of thunderstorms that moved off the coast of Africa on September 9.[1] On a westward track, Hugo steadily intensified, becoming a tropical storm on the 11, and a Hurricane on the 13.[1] Hugo reached its peak intensity while several hundred miles to the east of Puerto Rico.
Hugo began to execute a more north-northwest track, still intensifing as it did so. On the 17, Hugo's eye was over Guadeloupe. Shortly thereafter, Hugo accelarated to the north-nothwest, and by the 19, Hugo was located to the north of Puerto Rico.[1] On the 21, Hugo was located a couple hundred miles east of Florida, when it began a more northward track, in response to a steering flow that was associated with a low pressure system that was moving across the United States.[1]
Hugo moved toward the northwest, and made landfall on the Isle of Palms, South Carolina, as a category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale on September 22.[1] The storm continued inland, and weakend to a tropical storm later that day.[1] The storm continued weakening as it moved inland, and on September 23, the storm was making its transition into a remnant low.[1]
[edit] Preparations
Savannah was evacuated in anticipation of Hugo, but saw no effects of the storm other than isolated and light showers. Had Hugo hit Savannah, it would have been the first major hurricane to make landfall in Georgia since Storm 7 of the 1898 season. Governor Carroll Campbell of South Carolina ordered an evacuation of the South Carolina coast in advance of the storm. This was credited with saving many lives.
[edit] Impact
| Region | Deaths |
|---|---|
| United States | 35 |
| Puerto Rico | 12 |
| Guadeloupe | 11 |
| Montserrat | 22 |
| Virgin Islands | 6 |
| Antigua and Barbuda | 10 |
| Saint Kitts and Nevis | 11 |
| Total | 107 |
Hugo caused $7 billion (1989 USD) in damage in the mainland United States[3]. At the time it was the costliest hurricane in U.S. history, but was exceeded in 1992 by Hurricane Andrew, and by three other storms since then. It remains the sixth costliest hurricane in U.S. history. An additional $3 billion of damages was reported throughout the Caribbean. Therefore, total damages from the storm were $10 billion (1989 USD).
Sources differ on the number of people killed by Hugo, with some citing the American Meteorological Society's figure of 49, and others claiming 56 deaths [4]. Some government agency sources claim only 32 deaths in the United States.
[edit] Caribbean
Severe damage was reported throughout the islands of the Caribbean. The storm caused an estimated $5 billion (1989 US dollars) in damages in the Caribbean (including $1 billion in Puerto Rico and the USVI.[3])
[edit] St. Croix
There was massive looting and unrest, prompting President George H.W. Bush to send troops to St. Croix in Operation Hawkeye.[citation needed] It also resulted in the first operational deployment of the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS), when the New Mexico-1 Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT)was deployed to assist in medical care needs of the stricken island.
[edit] Montserrat
90% of all structures were destroyed in the British overseas territory, including the island's hospital and virtually all the homes of its 12,000 residents. Tourism and agriculture were also severely hit. Total damage was estimated at $100-300 million dollars (1989 USD); the island became reliant on aid as a result.[5][6]
Additionally, the local bat population was devastated, with an estimated 90% decrease in numbers following Hugo's passage. The species Chiroderma improvisum has not been seen on Montserrat since, and it is feared that it may be extinct on the island.[7]
[edit] Puerto Rico
Damage in Puerto Rico was severe, especially in the eastern part of the island. The agricultural sector was devastated, with the banana and coffee crops being almost completely wiped out. Heavy rains caused severe flooding in the vicinity of San Juan; in addition, several roads and bridges were washed away.[6]
In all, 12 deaths in Puerto Rico are attributed to Hugo,[2] six of which occurred in the southern city of Guayama where some residents were electrocuted by downed power lines. Nearly 28,000 people were left homeless by the storm.[6]
[edit] United States
[edit] South Carolina
While downtown Charleston, South Carolina suffered extensive damage, the greatest damage was reported in the northern suburbs of Mount Pleasant, Sullivan's Island, and Isle of Palms. Both islands were cut off from the mainland by destruction of their bridges. Along the coast, Hugo destroyed many houses and the storm surge piled boats on top of each other.
The storm's most intense wind and storm surge came ashore still further north between the small towns of Awendaw and McClellanville. An extraordinary 20-foot storm surge was reported between Cape Romain and Bulls Bay. Most mature trees in the Francis Marion National Forest were uprooted. Many of the stands were old growth longleaf pine, an important habitat for some endangered species. In McClellanville, a small fishing town, residents took refuge in Lincoln High School, and were surprised by the sudden tidal surge which flooded the school. With water pouring into the rooms, the refugees helped one another in pitch darkness to climb into the space in the hanging ceiling above the rooms. All survived.
According to Governor Carroll Campbell, there were about 3,000 tornadoes embedded within the hurricane, which accounts for extensive damage in some areas not within the path of the eyewall. The term "tornado" was a misnomer; the intense localized winds are more properly referred to as vortices. (See Hurricane Andrew for more information on hurricane vortices.)
Campbell also stated that enough timber was lost within South Carolina to build a home for every family in West Virginia. An immense salvage effort was undertaken to harvest downed pine trees for pulpwood before they deteriorated to the point where they could not be used. Still standing timber that appeared usable for lumber and plywood frequently had annular separations of the rings that made them dangerous to saw and nearly impossible to cut into plies, so they were also downgraded into pulpwood, leading to such a drop in pulpwood prices that eventually much of the salvage effort ceased.
Inland, the storm destroyed homes, timber, and the area's cotton crop. Rainfall totals associated with Hugo were slightly below the average for a direct United States strike, likely due to the storm's rapid forward motion. The maximum amount measured was 10.28" at Edisto Island, South Carolina. [8]
[edit] North Carolina
North Carolina's coastline suffered significant damage along its southward-facing beaches, including Brunswick County and the Outer Banks.
By the time it reached Charlotte, North Carolina, Hugo was still a Category 1 hurricane and was still strong enough to topple many trees across roads and houses leaving many without power, closing schools for as long as two weeks, and spawning several tornadoes. The storm took Charlotte by surprise; the city is 200 miles (320 km) inland and is frequently a stopover for people fleeing from the coast. Damage to trees was reported across much of western North Carolina.
In all, twenty-nine counties in North Carolina were declared federal disaster areas, with damages in that state alone estimated at $1 billion (1989 US dollars). [9]
[edit] Mid-Atlantic
The last death caused by the storm was in East Aurora, New York near Buffalo when the winds toppled a tree onto a motorist.
[edit] Aftermath
[edit] Red Cross response
Extensive relief aid was provided throughout by The Salvation Army, the Red Cross and various churches.
[edit] St. Croix
On the island of St. Croix, looting and lawlessness reigned in the aftermath of Hugo. Phone lines, power lines, hospitals, banks, the airport and 90% of all structures were severely damaged or destroyed. Three days after the storm hit, the governor of the Virgin Islands asked United States President George H. W. Bush for federal assistance in restoring order to the island. On September 20, members of the XVIII Airborne "Contingency Corps" were dispatched to the island as part of Operation Hawkeye. Military police patrolled the island for two months, imposing a dusk-to-dawn curfew. Cargo planes brought in food, water, mobile hospital units, and other supplies while offering free evacuation flights for anyone wanting to leave for the mainland.
[edit] Economic impact
After the storm, Governor Carroll Campbell said that the storm destroyed enough timber in South Carolina to frame a home for every family in the state of West Virginia.
[edit] FEMA criticism
In South Carolina, which bore the brunt of the storm, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was slow in responding. Senator Fritz Hollings referred to them as "a bunch of bureaucratic jackasses" during a speech on the floor of the United States Senate. An investigation was launched, which led to some reforms in FEMA procedures that helped the agency do a somewhat better job during Andrew, the next catastrophic hurricane to strike the United States. However, FEMA was criticized severely in 2005 for its similarly insufficient response to Hurricane Katrina, while private relief agencies and corporations such as Wal-Mart were praised for their prompt and comprehensive response to the disaster. FEMA's relevancy was questioned in Katrina's aftermath.
[edit] Retirement
- See also: List of retired Atlantic hurricane names
Due to the extensive damage, the name Hugo was retired following this storm, and will never again be used for an Atlantic hurricane. It was replaced with Humberto in the 1995 season.
[edit] In popular culture
This disaster was included as one of several different disaster scenarios in the 1993 video game SimCity 2000.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f g NHC (1989). Hurricane Hugo Preliminary Report. NHC. Retrieved on 2007-12-20.
- ^ a b http://www.geocities.com/hurricanene/hurricanehugo.htm Hurricane Hugo 1989
- ^ a b Costliest U.S. Hurricanes 1900-2004 (unadjusted)
- ^ http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pastdeadly.shtml NHC list of deadliest hurricanes
- ^ http://www.thecommonwealth.org/YearbookInternal/140416/140427/montserrat/ Commonwealth Secretariat - Montserrat
- ^ a b c http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/weather/hurricane/poststories/hugo-pr.htm WashingtonPost.com: WeatherPost - "Deadly Hugo Slams Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands"
- ^ http://www.sei.org/Bats.html Montserrat Bats
- ^ http://www.hpc.ncep.noaa.gov/tropical/rain/hugo1989rain.gif
- ^ http://www.csc.noaa.gov/products/nchaz/htm/hugo.htm NHC North Carolina hazards: Hugo
[edit] External links
- 1989 NHC Hugo Report
- 1994 NAS/NRC Hugo Report
- Hunting Hugo
- Operation Hawkeye
- NOAA Hugo history
- Another NOAA Hugo history
- NWS Service Assessment 1990 NDS Report
- HPC Tropical Cyclone Rainfall Climatology
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