Hurricane Andrew was a compact but extremely powerful tropical cyclone that became the most destructive hurricane to ever hit Florida in terms of structures damaged or destroyed and remained the costliest in financial terms until Hurricane Irma surpassed it 25 years later. Andrew was also the strongest hurricane to make landfall in the United States in decades and the costliest hurricane to strike anywhere in the country, until it was surpassed by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Andrew is one of only four tropical cyclones to make landfall in the continental United States as a Category 5, alongside the 1935 Labor Day hurricane, Hurricane Camille in 1969, and Michael in 2018. While the storm also caused major damage in The Bahamas and Louisiana, the greatest impact was felt in South Florida, where the storm made landfall as a Category 5 hurricane, with 1-minute sustained wind speeds as high as 165 mph (266 km/h) and gusts as high as 177 mph (285 km/h). Passing directly through the cities of Cutler Bay and Homestead in Dade County (now known as Miami-Dade County), the hurricane stripped many homes of all but their concrete foundations and caused catastrophic damage. In total, Andrew destroyed more than 63,500 houses, damaged more than 124,000 others, caused $27.3 billion in damage (equivalent to $65 billion in 2023), and left 65 people dead.
Andrew began as a tropical depression over the eastern Atlantic Ocean on August 16. After spending a week without significantly strengthening itself in the central Atlantic, the storm rapidly intensified into a powerful Category 5 hurricane while moving westward towards The Bahamas on August 23. Though Andrew briefly weakened to Category 4 status while traversing The Bahamas, it regained Category 5 intensity before making landfall in Florida on Elliott Key and then Homestead on August 24. With a barometric pressure of 922 hPa (27.23 inHg) at the time of landfall in Florida, Andrew is the sixth most-intense hurricane to strike the United States. Several hours later, the hurricane emerged over the Gulf of Mexico at Category 4 strength, with the Gulf Coast of the United States in its dangerous path. After turning northwestward and weakening further, Andrew moved ashore near Morgan City, Louisiana, as a low-end Category 3 storm. The small hurricane curved northeastward after landfall and rapidly lost its intensity, becoming an extratropical cyclone on August 28, and merging with the remnants of Hurricane Lester and a frontal system over the southern Appalachian Mountains on August 29.
Andrew first inflicted structural damage as it moved through the Bahamas, especially in Cat Cays, lashing the islands with storm surge, hurricane-force winds, and tornadoes. About 800 houses were destroyed in the archipelago, and there was substantial damage to the transport, water, sanitation, agriculture, and fishing sectors. Andrew left four dead and $250 million in damage throughout The Bahamas. In parts of southern Florida, Andrew produced severe winds; a wind gust of 177 mph (285 km/h) was observed at a house in Perrine. The cities of Florida City, Homestead, Cutler Ridge, and parts of Kendall received the brunt of Andrew. As many as 1.4 million people lost power at the height of the storm, some for more than one month. In the Everglades, 70,000 acres (280 km2) of trees were downed, while invasive Burmese pythons began inhabiting the region after a nearby facility housing them was destroyed. Though Andrew was moving fast, rainfall in Florida was substantial in a few areas (less in others); the rainfall peaked at 13.98 inches (355 mm) in western Dade County. Andrew was considered a "dry hurricane" by multiple media networks. In Florida, Andrew killed 44 and left a then-record $25 billion in damage.
Prior to making landfall in Louisiana on August 26, Andrew caused extensive damage to oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, leading to $500 million in losses for oil companies. It produced hurricane-force winds along its path through Louisiana, damaging large stretches of power lines that left about 230,000 people without electricity. Over 80% of trees in the Atchafalaya Basin were downed, and the agriculture there was devastated. Throughout the basin and Bayou Lafourche, 187 million freshwater fish were killed in the hurricane. With 23,000 houses damaged, 985 others destroyed, and 1,951 mobile homes demolished, property losses in Louisiana exceeded $1.5 billion. The hurricane caused the deaths of 17 people in the state, 6 of whom drowned offshore. Andrew spawned at least 28 tornadoes along the Gulf Coast, especially in Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi. In total, Andrew left 65 dead and caused $27.3 billion in damage. Andrew is currently the ninth-costliest Atlantic hurricane to hit the United States. It is also the third-strongest hurricane to hit the U.S. mainland by wind speed (165 mph (266 km/h)). Due to the destruction and loss of life caused by the storm, the name Andrew was retired by the World Meteorological Organization in the spring of 1993, being replaced by Alex for 1998.
Hurricane Andrew was a compact but extremely powerful tropical cyclone that became the most destructive hurricane to ever hit Florida in terms of structures damaged or destroyed and remained the costliest in financial terms until Hurricane Irma surpassed it 25 years later. Andrew was also the strongest hurricane to make landfall in the United States in decades and the costliest hurricane to strike anywhere in the country, until it was surpassed by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Andrew is one of only four tropical cyclones to make landfall in the continental United States as a Category 5, alongside the 1935 Labor Day hurricane, Hurricane Camille in 1969, and Michael in 2018. While the storm also caused major damage in The Bahamas and Louisiana, the greatest impact was felt in South Florida, where the storm made landfall as a Category 5 hurricane, with 1-minute sustained wind speeds as high as 165 mph (266 km/h) and gusts as high as 177 mph (285 km/h). Passing directly through the cities of Cutler Bay and Homestead in Dade County (now known as Miami-Dade County), the hurricane stripped many homes of all but their concrete foundations and caused catastrophic damage. In total, Andrew destroyed more than 63,500 houses, damaged more than 124,000 others, caused $27.3 billion in damage (equivalent to $65 billion in 2023), and left 65 people dead.
Andrew began as a tropical depression over the eastern Atlantic Ocean on August 16. After spending a week without significantly strengthening itself in the central Atlantic, the storm rapidly intensified into a powerful Category 5 hurricane while moving westward towards The Bahamas on August 23. Though Andrew briefly weakened to Category 4 status while traversing The Bahamas, it regained Category 5 intensity before making landfall in Florida on Elliott Key and then Homestead on August 24. With a barometric pressure of 922 hPa (27.23 inHg) at the time of landfall in Florida, Andrew is the sixth most-intense hurricane to strike the United States. Several hours later, the hurricane emerged over the Gulf of Mexico at Category 4 strength, with the Gulf Coast of the United States in its dangerous path. After turning northwestward and weakening further, Andrew moved ashore near Morgan City, Louisiana, as a low-end Category 3 storm. The small hurricane curved northeastward after landfall and rapidly lost its intensity, becoming an extratropical cyclone on August 28, and merging with the remnants of Hurricane Lester and a frontal system over the southern Appalachian Mountains on August 29.
Andrew first inflicted structural damage as it moved through the Bahamas, especially in Cat Cays, lashing the islands with storm surge, hurricane-force winds, and tornadoes. About 800 houses were destroyed in the archipelago, and there was substantial damage to the transport, water, sanitation, agriculture, and fishing sectors. Andrew left four dead and $250 million in damage throughout The Bahamas. In parts of southern Florida, Andrew produced severe winds; a wind gust of 177 mph (285 km/h) was observed at a house in Perrine. The cities of Florida City, Homestead, Cutler Ridge, and parts of Kendall received the brunt of Andrew. As many as 1.4 million people lost power at the height of the storm, some for more than one month. In the Everglades, 70,000 acres (280 km2) of trees were downed, while invasive Burmese pythons began inhabiting the region after a nearby facility housing them was destroyed. Though Andrew was moving fast, rainfall in Florida was substantial in a few areas (less in others); the rainfall peaked at 13.98 inches (355 mm) in western Dade County. Andrew was considered a "dry hurricane" by multiple media networks. In Florida, Andrew killed 44 and left a then-record $25 billion in damage.
Prior to making landfall in Louisiana on August 26, Andrew caused extensive damage to oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, leading to $500 million in losses for oil companies. It produced hurricane-force winds along its path through Louisiana, damaging large stretches of power lines that left about 230,000 people without electricity. Over 80% of trees in the Atchafalaya Basin were downed, and the agriculture there was devastated. Throughout the basin and Bayou Lafourche, 187 million freshwater fish were killed in the hurricane. With 23,000 houses damaged, 985 others destroyed, and 1,951 mobile homes demolished, property losses in Louisiana exceeded $1.5 billion. The hurricane caused the deaths of 17 people in the state, 6 of whom drowned offshore. Andrew spawned at least 28 tornadoes along the Gulf Coast, especially in Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi. In total, Andrew left 65 dead and caused $27.3 billion in damage. Andrew is currently the ninth-costliest Atlantic hurricane to hit the United States. It is also the third-strongest hurricane to hit the U.S. mainland by wind speed (165 mph (266 km/h)). Due to the destruction and loss of life caused by the storm, the name Andrew was retired by the World Meteorological Organization in the spring of 1993, being replaced by Alex for 1998.
Meteorological history
On August 14, a tropical wave moved off the west coast of Africa. A ridge of high pressure to its north caused the wave to move quickly westward. An area of convection developed along the wave axis to the south of the Cape Verde islands, and on August 15, meteorologists began classifying the system using the Dvorak technique. The thunderstorm activity became more concentrated, and narrow spiral rainbands began to develop around a center of circulation. It is estimated that Tropical Depression Three developed late on August 16, about 1,630 mi (2,620 km) east-southeast of Barbados. Embedded within the deep easterlies, the depression tracked west-northwestward at 20 mph (32 km/h). Initially, moderate wind shear prevented strengthening, until a decrease in shear allowed the depression to intensify into a tropical storm, which the National Hurricane Center named Andrew at 12:00 UTC on August 17.
By the morning hours of August 18, the storm had maintained convection near its center, with spiral bands to its west, as the winds increased to 50 mph (80 km/h). Shortly thereafter, the storm began to lose velocity due to increased southwesterly wind shear from an upper-level low. On August 19, a hurricane hunters flight into the storm failed to locate a well-defined center and on the following day, a flight found that the cyclone had degenerated to the extent that only a diffuse low-level circulation center remained; observations indicated the barometric pressure rose to an unusually high 1,015 mbar (29.97 inHg). The flight indicated that Andrew maintained a vigorous circulation aloft. After the upper-level low weakened and split into a trough, the wind shear decreased over the storm. A strong high pressure system then developed over the southeastern United States, which built eastward and caused Andrew to turn to the west. Convection became more organized as upper-level outflow became better established. An eye formed, and Andrew attained hurricane status early on August 22, about 650 mi (1,050 km) east-southeast of Nassau, Bahamas. In the forecast issued six hours after becoming a hurricane, the cyclone was predicted to make landfall near Jupiter, Florida, with winds of 105 mph (169 km/h) on August 25. This underestimated both the strength and the speed of the storm, which would eventually make landfall in South Florida.
The hurricane accelerated westward into an area of highly favorable conditions, and began to rapidly intensify late on August 22; the atmospheric pressure dropped by 47 mbar (1.388 inHg) to a minimum of 922 mbar (27.23 inHg) in a 24‑hour period. On August 23, the storm attained Category 5 status on the Saffir–Simpson scale, reaching maximum sustained winds of 175 mph (282 km/h) a short distance off Eleuthera in the Bahamas at 18:00 UTC. Despite its intensity, Andrew was a small tropical cyclone, with winds of 35 mph (56 km/h) extending out only about 90 mi (140 km) from the center. After reaching that intensity, the hurricane underwent an eyewall replacement cycle. At 21:00 UTC on August 23, Andrew made landfall on Eleuthera as a Category 5 hurricane, with winds of 160 mph (260 km/h). The cyclone weakened further while crossing the Bahama Banks, and at 01:00 UTC on August 24, Andrew hit the southern Berry Islands of The Bahamas as a Category 4 hurricane, with winds of 150 mph (240 km/h). As it crossed over the warm waters of the Gulf Stream, the hurricane rapidly re-intensified as the eye decreased in size and its eyewall convection deepened. At 08:40 UTC on August 24, Andrew struck Elliott Key as a Category 5 hurricane, with winds of 165 mph (266 km/h) and a pressure of 926 mbar (27.34 inHg). About 25 minutes after its first Florida landfall, Andrew made another landfall just northeast of Homestead, with a slightly lower pressure of 922 mbar (27.23 inHg). This barometric pressure made Andrew the most intense hurricane to strike the United States since Hurricane Camille in 1969 and the strongest tropical cyclone to make landfall in Florida since the Labor Day hurricane of 1935. The United States would not experience another landfall from a hurricane at Category 5 intensity until Hurricane Michael in 2018.
As the eye moved onshore in Florida, the convection in the eyewall strengthened due to increased convergence, and Hurricane Hunters reported a warmer eyewall temperature than two hours prior. However, Andrew weakened as it continued further inland, and after crossing southern Florida in four hours, the storm emerged into the Gulf of Mexico with winds of 130 mph (210 km/h). In the Gulf of Mexico, the eye remained well-defined as the hurricane turned to the west-northwest, a change due to the weakening of the ridge to its north. Andrew steadily re-intensified over the Gulf of Mexico, reaching winds of 145 mph (233 km/h) late on August 25. As the high pressure system to its north weakened, a strong mid-latitude trough approached the area from the northwest. This caused the hurricane to decelerate to the northwest, and winds decreased as Andrew approached the Gulf Coast of the United States.
At 08:30 UTC on August 26, the cyclone made landfall about 20 mi (32 km) west-southwest of Morgan City, Louisiana, with winds of 115 mph (185 km/h). Andrew weakened rapidly as it turned to the north and northeast, falling to tropical storm intensity within 10 hours. After entering Mississippi, the cyclone weakened into a tropical depression early on August 27. Accelerating northeastward, the depression began merging with the approaching frontal system, and by midday on August 28, Andrew had lost its tropical characteristics while located over the southern Appalachian Mountains. The storm's remnants continued moving northeast, fully merging with the remnants of Hurricane Lester and a frontal zone over Pennsylvania on August 29.
Post-analysis on Andrew revealed that the storm was often stronger than operationally reported between early on August 22 and early on August 26. In real time, the National Hurricane Center assessed its peak intensity as 150 mph (240 km/h), which was upgraded to 155 mph (249 km/h) in a post-storm analysis after the season ended. However, a 2004 paper by Christopher Landsea and others concluded that Andrew became a Category 5 hurricane near the Bahamas on August 23 and reached maximum sustained winds of 175 mph (282 km/h). The paper also indicated that Andrew briefly re-intensified into a Category 5 hurricane around the time of landfall in South Florida early on August 24. The storm was found to have been slightly stronger than originally assessed while approaching Louisiana, but the landfall winds were decreased from 120 to 115 mph (193 to 185 km/h).
Preparations
Bahamas
At 1500 UTC on August 22, about 30 hours prior to landfall, the government of the Bahamas issued a hurricane watch for the northwest Bahamas, including Andros and Eleuthera islands, northward through Grand Bahama and Great Abaco. Six hours later, the watch was upgraded to a hurricane warning, and about 15 hours before landfall a hurricane warning was issued for the central Bahamas, including Cat Island, Exuma, San Salvador Island, and Long Island. All watches and warnings were discontinued on August 24. The advance warning was credited for the low death toll in the country. A total of 58 shelters were opened at churches, government buildings, and schools.
Prime Minister of the Bahamas Hubert Ingraham, who took office while the storm was active, urged residents to "take this hurricane seriously". Before the hurricane passed through the Bahamas, forecasters predicted a storm surge of up to 18 ft (5.5 m), as well as up to 8 in (200 mm) of rain.
In a subsequent analysis by Arthur Rolle, the Bahamas Chief Meteorological Officer, national emergency agencies including the Red Cross and the Royal Bahamas Defence Force "responded exceptionally well to the hurricane alerts." The same report cited the public "[exhibiting] a degree of complacency, particularly in New Providence and The Current, Eleuthera." Ultimately, the advance warning of the hurricane contributed to the low death toll from the storm. The hurricane struck four days after Hubert Ingraham became Bahamian Prime Minister, the first new Prime Minister in 25 years. There was initially a concern over how Ingraham would handle the hurricane, due to many of the government officials remaining in power from the previous administration; however, government response to the hurricane was normal.
Florida
Initially, forecasters predicted tides up to 14 ft (4.3 m) above normal along the east coast of Florida, near the potential location of landfall. Rainfall was projected to be between 5 and 8 in (130 and 200 mm) along the path of the storm. In addition, the National Hurricane Center noted the likelihood of isolated tornadoes in Central and South Florida during the passage of Andrew on August 23 and 24. Several tropical storm and hurricane warnings were issued for much of Central and South Florida, from Titusville on the east coast to Venice on the west coast. Included in the warnings were Lake Okeechobee and all of the Florida Keys. By 18:00 UTC on August 24, all watches and warnings issued were discontinued after Andrew progressed into the Gulf of Mexico.
GovernorLawton Chiles declared a state of emergency and activated about one-third of the Florida National Guard. Many residents evacuated, most voluntarily, from Broward, Charlotte, Collier, Lee, Martin, Dade, Monroe, Palm Beach, and Sarasota counties. A total of 142 shelters opened in these counties and collectively housed at least 84,340 people. In Dade County alone, 515,670 people were ordered to evacuate. As Andrew was approaching, an estimated 20,000–30,000 tourists were in the Florida Keys (Monroe County). Overall, almost 1.2 million people evacuated, which contributed to the low number of fatalities, despite the intensity of the storm. Many evacuees also checked into hotels, with rooms completely booked as far north as Ocala. Ultimately, the sheer number of evacuees led to likely the largest traffic jam in the history of Florida, mostly along Interstate 95. United States Coast Guard vessels on or near the Florida coastline were either secured onshore or sent to ride out the storm at sea. Government offices and public and private schools were closed from Monroe County northward to St. Lucie County. Many colleges and universities in southeast Florida also closed. Major airports such as the Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood, Key West, Miami, and Palm Beach international airports closed.
Gulf Coast of the United States
Shortly after the storm emerged into the Gulf of Mexico from southern Florida, the National Hurricane Center issued hurricane watches and warnings for the Gulf Coast of the United States beginning at 13:00 UTC on August 24. After the initial hurricane watch from Mobile, Alabama, to Sabine Pass, Texas, the watches and warnings were expanded to eventually include areas from Mobile, Alabama, to Freeport, Texas. All watches and warnings on the Gulf Coast were discontinued late on August 26 after the hurricane moved inland over Louisiana.
Due to the hurricane's threat, workers fled oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, while the Coast Guard moved their boats inland. Officials in Mississippi suggested that about 100,000 people evacuate the coastal counties. Shelters were opened in Hancock and Harrison counties, though only 68 people went to a shelter in the former. Gambling ships were moved into harbors and inland canals. Two run-offs for special legislative elections scheduled for August 25 were postponed.