Here, find an overview of the history of hurricanes in the United States, including those that have caused the most deaths and damage.
The most significant hurricanes in recent US history
Hurricane Michael
Date: October 7 to 11, 2018
This Category 5 hurricane made landfall in Florida, near Mexico Beach and Tyndall Air Force Base.
When it made landfall, the hurricane was classified as a Category 4, but later analysis found that winds reached 155 mph, so the National Hurricane Center (NHC) updated the category. It is rare for Category 5 hurricanes to directly strike the continental United States.
Michael caused damage of nearly $25 billion.
The cyclone devastated Mexico Beach. Of the city’s 1,692 buildings, 809 were destroyed and a total of 1,584 were damaged. All buildings at the air base were also damaged.
The cycle has directly caused at least 16 deaths in Florida, Virginia, North Carolina and Georgia.
Hurricane Maria
Date: September 16 to 30, 2017
Married It made landfall in the Dominican Republic as a Category 5 hurricane and struck Puerto Rico as a Category 4 hurricane.
This caused $90 billion in damages.
The official death toll after the hurricane was 64 in Puerto Rico. However, investigations by CNN and other media outlets indicated that there may have been more than 1,000 deaths on the island related to the hurricane.
For its part, the Puerto Rico government increased the death toll from 64 to 2,975 after researchers at George Washington University released a report on deaths in 2018.
Previously, an academic report published in the New England Journal of Medicine estimated that 4,645 people died during the cyclone and its aftermath. The article’s authors called the official figure of 64 a “substantial underestimate.” However, the number of deaths cited in the article was a median estimate based on a limited survey of 3,299 households. The survey indicates that the number of people who died due to the storm could be between 793 and 8,498.
In the Dominican Republic, 31 people died as a direct result of the cyclone. Deaths were also reported in St. Thomas, Dominican Republic and Haiti. Three people drowned in rip currents off the coast of New Jersey and a fourth drowning death was reported in Florida.
Massive damage to the aging power grid led to widespread power outages that lasted for months.
Hurricane Irma
Date: August 30 to September 12, 2017
This cyclone It made landfall seven times, four of which were as a Category 5 hurricane on several northern Caribbean islands. It reached the Florida Keys as a Category 4 cyclone and made landfall in southwest Florida as a Category 3 cyclone.
This caused $50,000 million in damage.
More than six million Florida residents were ordered to evacuate ahead of the hurricane, which directly caused at least 47 deaths across the Caribbean islands and southeastern United States.
Hurricane Harvey
Date: August 17 to September 1, 2017
He hit the ground first hurricane Category 4 near Rockport, Texas, and battered the state’s coast for four days, causing devastating flooding. Its remains then made landfall in southwest Louisiana.
It set the record for rainfall caused by a tropical cyclone in the continental United States: nearly 130 cm of rain was recorded in parts of Texas. An estimated 27 billion gallons of water fell on Texas and Louisiana in six days.
This caused damages amounting to $125 billion.
At least 68 deaths directly linked to the hurricane have been reported in Texas, the highest number of hurricane deaths in the state since 1919.
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