As Harvey Approaches, Remember the Lessons from Andrew

Hurricane Andrew bearing down on the Bahamas (Source: NOAA)

It’s been 25 years since Hurricane Andrew became one of the most infamous hurricanes in U.S. history.  Andrew remains only the third Category 5 hurricane to make landfall in the United States, joining the unnamed 1935 Labor Day hurricane that decimated the Florida Keys and Hurricane Camille in 1969.  Andrew was the only major hurricane in a quiet 1992 season, illustrating how it doesn’t have to be an active season to be a damaging and deadly one.

Andrew intensified into a Category 5 hurricane with peak sustained winds of 175 mph when it passed through the Bahamas.  Andrew had sustained winds of 165 mph and a minimum central pressure of 922 millibars (mb) when it came ashore in Florida on August 24, 1992.  Standard sea level air pressure is 1013.25 mb, demonstrating just how low Andrew’s air pressure was.  It was the first major hurricane (Category 3 or higher on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale) to make landfall in the state of Florida since Eloise in 1975. 

The 1970s and 1980s were a relatively quiet period in the tropical Atlantic compared to previous decades.  That coincided with a false sense of security among residents and developers along coastal areas from Texas all the way up to Maine.  Florida, in particular, experienced a high degree of population growth and coastal development during this period.  Sometimes, existing building codes that were in place to protect against hurricane damage were disregarded.  The existing codes were later found to be largely inadequate.  These factors contributed to the extreme and widespread damage that Andrew caused in southern Florida.  Following this catastrophe, building codes were modernized and have been more strictly enforced. 

Hurricane Andrew became the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history with $26.5 billion.  The cost could have been significantly higher had the track been slightly different.  Andrew was also a relatively compact hurricane with its strongest winds concentrated in a relatively limited area.  Andrew’s eye traveled roughly 30 miles south of downtown Miami, which largely spared the city.

If another storm of Hurricane Andrew’s intensity were to threaten an urban area such as Miami or New Orleans nowadays, then the potential for damage and loss of life could rival Katrina (2005) or Sandy (2012).  That’s why following strict building codes and listening to your authorities if they call for evacuation is critically important.  Education and preparation should be Hurricane Andrew’s lasting legacy. 

Currently, Hurricane Harvey is in the Gulf of Mexico and could become the first hurricane to make landfall in Texas since Ike in 2008.  Harvey could also become the first major hurricane to make landfall in the United States since Wilma in 2005.