HURRICANE ANDREW

NWSMrAMIRADAR AugtN24, 1992

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Hurricane Research Division

NOAAIAOML Miami, FL

Domain: 100 x 100 km

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ANDREW became a hmricane on 22 August 1992 and within 36 boors intensified to Category 4 strength before crossing over the northwestern Bahamas. On the morning of the 24th, Hmricane Andrew struck southeast Florida with maximum sustained surface winds estimated at 145 mph, gusts exceeding 175 mph, and a minimum central pressure of 922mb (27.23"), which is the third lowest central pressure this centmy for a hurricane making landfall in the United States. Andrew went on to strike the central Louisiana coast on 26 August as a Category 3 stonn. Hmricane Andrew was directly responsible for 26 deaths, indirectly for at least 36 more, and caused $20-25 billion in damages, making it the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history.

~ ~ Comments on Hurricane Andrew color radar image (opposite side): The pictQre is ~ ~ from the last full sweep of the National Weather Service's Miami WSR-57 radar {collocated 5 ~ with the National Hmricane Center [NHC]) before the radar was destroyed by the stonn. The g ~ digitized radar imagery shows the eye centered over Elliott Key just before landfall at ~ o£3 Homestead. Air Force Base (HAFB). As Andrew traveled due west, the heaviest damage ~ .9 occurred in thooe areas affected by the eyewall (red and pink doughnut-shaped region). The ~ ~ weather radar measures the power from the portion of the radar beam scattered back by raindrops ~ ~ and ice particles, expressed here as units of decibels of reflectivity (dBZ). The colors ~ §' associated with higher dBZ (i.e., red) correspond to areas with larger amounts of rain, which a 5 typically are also regions of stronger winds. Areas with high dBZ in the center of the eye are 5 ..8 because of ground clutter from islands. (Ground clutter is the reflection of the radar beam by ~ ~ terrain, large structures, and rough water.) Ground clutter in the vicinity of NHC has been ~ o removed and is shown in gray. Radar data recorded by Peter Dodge and Paul A. Leighton of 3 ~ the Hurricane Research Division/ AOML/NOAA. :$ru ij..C:: ~ 'S ~ Q) X!..c:: ~ "' 3 .!!l il-5 ::l = ~ 0 u"'O 3] 5 "lj .... ~ ~"'0 ~ "' u Q) .. ::l 3'1':1 :: > ("'0

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DATE (UTC) AUGUST 1992 Best track minimum central pressures and maximum sustained wind speeds for Hurricane Andrew .

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Best track positions for Hmricane Andrew (August 16-28, 1992). Positions at 00 and 12 UTC are shown. Dates are at the 00 UTC Locations. Tropical depression, tropical storm and hmricane strengths are represented by open circles and open and filled hmricane symbols, respectively. Locations of lowest minimum central pressure are shown. Data for this and other black and white figures are from National Hmricane Center's preliminary report.

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Preliminary storm tide heights (sum of storm surge and astronomical tide) along western shcxe of B~yne Bay associated with Hmricane Andrew, 24 August 1992. (Data provided by the U.S. Geological Survey under a mission assignment from FEMA.) Heights in feet above NGVD- National Geodetic Vertical Datum- zero elevation- i.e., mean sea level of 1929. ~ -~ .. ~

~ & Figures and text by Stanley B. Goldenberg and Michael L. Black of the Hurricane Research Division, Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory, NOAA, Miami, Florida. (www.aoml.noaa.gov)