Hope you enjoyed the first half of our list of the top 10 weather events in recent American history. Before we get to the second half, including our #1, let's take a look at the honorable mentions.
HMs
-Hurricane Floyd (September 7-19, 1999)
This hurricane was a tremendous rainmaker in 1999, so much so that school systems on the East Coast decided to cancel school for two days in September. I'll never forget that the second of the two days we lost, I spent playing football in the neighborhood under perfectly sunny skies. There was no need to cancel school that day.
-LaPlata Tornado of 2002 (April 28, 2002)
Rivaling the College Park Tornado, the La Plata tornado actually caused more damage and had a higher casualty count. However, my personal experiences with the College Park Tornado elevated that event into the top 10 and shunted this one to the HM list.
-Blizzard of 1996 (January 6-10, 1996)
This storm had significant snow, followed by unusual warmth which triggered massive flooding and mudslides along the East Coast. This storm was not as widespread as the Storm of the Century in 1993, and true blizzard conditions were only reported in a few locations. However, due to the amounts of snowfall alone (~4 feet in some locations), this storm makes the HM list.
-Presidents Day Storm of 2003 (February 14-19, 2003)
The University of Maryland is usually very hesitant to close school for weather. If they can get the parking lots cleared, school is open, regardless of what public school systems decide to do. UMD students are adults, they can get to work. Therefore, when the University closed for 3 days, you know a lot of snow had fallen on the ground.
-Midwestern Tornado Outbreak of 2011 (April 9-11, 2011)
The South is usually a playground for tornados in early Spring as warm air from the South starts to clash with the receding cold air masses from Canada. The results are severe thunderstorms and occasional tornadoes. Several tornadoes have already been confirmed in 2011. One such event in Iowa and Wisconsin spawned 29 confirmed tornadoes over this 3 day period. Active weather continues across the Midwest and East as these clashing airmasses continue to produce severe thunderstorms, flash floods, and tornadoes.
Onto the main course! Let's take a look at the top 5 weather events in recent American history!
5) Hurricane Hugo (September 9-25, 1989)
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| Hugo radar image over Charleston |
One would think that South Carolina would be in a bullseye for hurricane strikes, but compared to the average numbers of hits in Florida and on the Outer Banks, South Carolina really does not get many tropical events. This is mostly due to the topography of the East Coast. It sort of curves inward, and Charleston and Myrtle Beach are well within that curve. Nevertheless, they are certainly not immune from hurricane hits, and probably the most famous hurricane hit in that state's history was Hugo. Hugo was another Cape Verde wave train storm (like Isabel and many others before and after it), and reached a peak intensity of Category 5. However, despite fluctuations, it made most of its landfalls in the Caribbean as a Category 4. It made landfall in South Carolina as a Category 4 on September 22nd. At the time, it was the costliest hurricane to make landfall in the US, as well as one of the strongest. Billions of dollars in damage was also reported in the Caribbean, on islands such as Puerto Rico, Guadeloupe (a direct hit), and the Virgin Islands. Rainfall totals exceeded 10 inches on the South Carolina coast, topping out at a whopping 10.28" on Edisto Island, nearby Charleston. In an amazing example of how quickly tropical systems can dissipate when they move over land, in the 24 hours after landfall, Hugo went from a Category 4 hurricane, to an extratropical system swept away by a frontal system over Pennsylvania.
4) Knickerbocker Storm (January 27-28, 1922)
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| 1920s era NOAA Weather Map |
For most of the 20th Century and early 21st, this was the snowstorm against which other snowstorms were judged (until #3 happened...see below). This storm got its nickname from the Knickerbocker Theater in Washington, DC, a fairly new building (only 5 years old). However, it was built with several design flaws, the most important of which was it had a flat roof, so several feet of snow would just collect on it and stay there. During a performance during the storm, the snow built up so high on the roof that it collapsed, sending balcony seating tumbing, and burying several spectators in rubble. Meteorologically, this storm had a very similar setup to many of the other blizzards we have discussed in this top 10. A southern low pressure system tracked across the Gulf of Mexico behind an arctic air mass from Canada. As the low emerged off the coast, it grew in size thanks to the energy received from the warm Gulf waters and proceeded to turn north. By the time it departed the Mid Atlantic, 28 inches of snow fell in Washington, DC, thanks mostly in part to the slow-moving nature of the system. It stayed over the area for a very long period of time as far as blizzards go. The Blizzards of 2010 dumped more snow all together, but the Knickerbocker Storm is still the number 1 snowmaker in DC history in terms of snow produced by an individual system (I know there are a million and one different definitions regarding climatological records). The deepest impact of the storm included a swath from Richmond all the way to Philadelphia.
3) The Snowpocalypse (Blizzards of 2009 and 2010)
I am sick of snow. If I never see another snowflake for the next 10 years, that will just make my day. Why, Nick? You're a teacher. Shouldn't I have some sort of love affair with snow and snow days? Well, I don't, never really did. I'm somebody who likes to get out and about, and you can't do that if you have 3 feet of snow covering your street. Sure, we get off of work and school, but all that does is set you back by however many days. So when we got hit by blizzard after blizzard in the Winter of 2009 and 2010, cabin fever did not even begin to describe my feelings. This Winter shattered records in terms of snowfall in a single season. 3 separate systems (1 in December and 2 in February) all had the same dynamic setups. There was also a 4th that occured in January, but fortunately that event had warm enough temperatures that rain was the dominate precipitation type. Otherwise, we might have had FOUR blizzards in one season. I think photos best tell the story. So here are a few pictures that I took (with my old 0.02 megapixel camera phone...pre iPhone days).
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| 2 feet-And counting! |
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| Dad shoveling the driveway |
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| Snow Mountain!!! |
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| My car buried under 2 feet of snow |
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| Don't adjust your monitors! This is not the same photo! This is my car from December...buried under 2 feet of snow!!! |
Hopefully those pictures tell the story far better than anything I can type. This past winter, we lost 4 days of school due to snow...and that's 4 days too many if you ask me. Public schools now have to go until June 22nd to make up the days. Fortunately, we're still good for getting out on June 10th. Winters like that make me wish I lived in Florida...bring on the hurricanes!!!! Speaking of.....
2) Hurricane Katrina (August 23-31, 2005)
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| Katrina at landfall (from NOAA) |
What defined the presidency of George W. Bush? Was it 9/11, Iraq, "Mission Accomplished?" Many claim that it was something that was totally beyond his control: the weather. Specifically they were referering to Hurricane Katrina, a powerful Category 5 storm that decimated the Gulf Coast, and the city of New Orleans in particular. How Bush responded to this natural disaster is something that will be debated for years to come. However, for our post, I will focus on the metorological aspects of this storm. It formed as TD12 on August 23 offshore of the Bahamas (the entire 2005 season was the most active on record in the Atlantic basin in terms of total number of named storms and hurricanes). The next day it strengthened into a tropical storm, and then into a hurricane the day after that. It made a beeline for South Florida...the same area that was decimated 13 years prior by another powerful Bahamian hurricane that we'll discuss next. However, unlike that year, Katrina came ashore as only a minimal category 1 storm. What was eerily similar with Andrew was the track. After crossing South Florida, each storm took a sharp turn to the north over the Gulf of Mexico. The biggest difference was the time it took for each storm to make this move. Andrew turned fairly quickly and did not have a chance to restrengthen. Katrina stayed over the open waters for 2 days, strengthening into a 175 mph Category 5 monster. Hurricanes very rarely are able to maintain that kind of strength, and as it stayed over the Gulf, cooler water upwelled as the warm water was lifted into the storm. This allowed the storm to weaken to a Category 3 hurricane just prior to landfall over Plaquemines Parish in Louisiana. At landfall, hurricane force winds (>74 mph) were already being felt in New Orleans. Category 3 storms are still extensive in the amount of damage they can produce, and in a city like New Orleans (below sea level), this was more than enough to innundate the city. The levees that are supposed to protect it from the Gulf, Lake Pontchartrain, and the Mississippi River were no match for the storm surge. The Louisiana Superdome, which served as a shelter of last resort for many refugees, had a hole blown in its roof. At the end, Katrina ended up being the costliest hurricane in American history. NOAA has an excellent page on the effects and aftermath of Katrina on its
Katrina webpage. Check it out.
1) Hurricane Andrew (August 16-28, 1992)
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| Infrared image of Andrew over Florida |
The reason I have rated Andrew ahead of Katrina on my list is very simple. Andrew set the standard against which other hurricanes have been judged. Even monster hurricanes of the past like Hugo, Camille, and the Labor Day Storm of 1935 have been compared against Andrew. Before reading on, I invite you to check out the
Weather Channel's coverage of the storm back from 1992. I think it really tells the story of the storm's meteorological history...and Jim Cantore's hair is fantastic!
Even early in the hurricane's history, a very well defined eye can be seen in the satellite imagery. All indicators were that Andrew would strengthen rapidly and deeply. In almost the blink of an eye, Andrew was at Category 5 and racing toward the South Florida coast. By the time it reached Florida, sustained winds were officially measured at 145 mph with gusts to 175 (officially a Category 4 storm). This was later revised to indicate that Andrew did in fact make landfall as a Category 5 storm (160 mph sustained), making it one of only 3 Atlantic hurricanes to do so (Camille and the Labor Day storm of 1935 being the others). At the time, it was the costliest weather event in American history (surpassed by Katrina 13 years later). After crossing the Florida peninsula, the hurricane emerged in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico and immediately turned north. However, it did not stay in the Gulf long enough to strengthen again beyond a Category 3, which is the intensity at which it struck the Gulf coast. Nevertheless, after seeing what Andrew was doing to Florida, Gulf Coast communities were far better prepared, and Andrew is never remembered as a storm that devastated this region as much as it devastated Florida, although there was significant damaged reported nonetheless. Andrew remains the standard against which powerful hurricanes are measured. Katrina will always have a place in meteorological history, but Andrew remains the standard.
I hope you enjoyed our trip through the top weather events in recent American history. I have to remind you that this list is far from complete, and it just one man's opinion (me). I would love to hear your takes on your most memorable weather events. Please share them in the comments section or on Facebook. DISCUSS!
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