Hurricane Ian could make landfall in Florida on Wednesday as a devastating and incredibly rare Category 5 hurricane.
Category 5 hurricanes are one of the strongest forces Mother Nature can throw at coastal residents. Only four in this category have struck the United States, with Ian in line to be the fifth.
A Category 5 hurricane can reach up to 157 miles per hour, causing catastrophic damage, according to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. After striking land, the aftermath is likely to be widespread, causing a high percentage of destroyed homes and power outages that can last from weeks to months.
Currently, Hurricane Ian is packing winds at 155 mph, just shy of the Category 5 distinction. Any higher, and Hurricane Ian will join the four other Category 5 hurricanes that have made contact with the U.S. mainland: Labor Day (1935), Camille (1969), Andrew (1992), and Michael (2018).
HURRICANE IAN UPDATES: LIVE COVERAGE AS POTENTIALLY DEADLY STORM COULD BECOME CATEGORY 5
1935: Labor Day Hurricane
The Labor Day Hurricane is the strongest hurricane to hit America, with its winds reaching close to 185 mph, according to an analysis from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
During its rampage, the Labor Day Hurricane caused approximately $6 million in damage and killed an estimated 600 people. Most of the damage occurred in Florida, particularly the Florida Keys. The storm also crossed into Georgia, North and South Carolina, and Virginia.
The hurricane’s aftermath spurned some controversy over the Weather Bureau’s hurricane response and mishandling of the storm evacuations.
Approximately 260 World War I veterans were working on a section of the Overseas Highway for a federal relief project, according to the Library of Congress. On the day of the storm, officials sent a train to evacuate the men, but it failed to reach the camps located on Lower Matecumbe Key due to high winds blowing it off the tracks, and the veterans were killed during the storm.
To prevent this in the future, the Weather Bureau established additional monitoring stations throughout southern Florida and took steps to improve disaster preparedness in vulnerable coastal areas.
1969: Hurricane Camille
The National Weather Service marks Hurricane Camille as the second-strongest hurricane to make landfall in the U.S.
Camille’s maximum wind strength is unknown because the hurricane wiped out all of the wind-recording technology. However, scientists’ analyses peg the winds to have reached approximately 175 mph.
The storm hit Mississippi counties the hardest, followed by the Alabama coast and Mobile metro area. Damage consisted of roof damage, the partial destruction of buildings, fallen trees, and washed-out roads, as well as extensive crop damage to many tung and pecan orchards in southwest Mississippi.
1992: Hurricane Andrew
Hurricane Andrew is currently the strongest hurricane to hit Florida. At landfall, the wind speed hit 165 mph.
It caused an estimated $26 billion in damages, making it the most expensive natural disaster until 13 years later, when Hurricane Katrina struck the Atlantic.
While storm surge is typically the cause for most damage, Andrew’s extremely strong winds were actually to blame. Of the 65 deaths caused by the storm, 23 were in the U.S. More than 99% of mobile homes were destroyed in Florida.
The hurricane was eventually downgraded to a Category 3 hurricane, with 115 mph winds, as it moved to Louisiana, causing another $1 billion in damages.
2018: Hurricane Michael
This Category 5 hurricane struck the Florida Panhandle region in 2018, particularly in the Panama City Beach, Mexico Beach, and Cape San Blas areas, at 161 mph. This was an unprecedented hurricane for the region.
The damage came in the form of a “catastrophic storm surge,” destroying the second floor of buildings throughout Mexico Beach, the beach itself, and an RV park.
The wind damage affected close to 50,000 structures across the Florida Panhandle, western Big Bend, southwest Georgia, and southeast Alabama. Of the 50,000, more than 3,000 structures were destroyed.
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In Florida, timber damage was extensive. Cost estimates were over $1.2 billion dollars, with almost 3 million acres of forested land damaged, according to the Florida Forest Service. Replanting in the more severely damaged areas was estimated to be an additional $240 million.
