Hurricane Frances was the second of four Atlantic hurricanes to affect the U.S. state of Florida during the 2004 season. A deadly and destructive tropical cyclone, Frances also struck the Bahamas and other portions of the Southeastern United States. A Cape Verde hurricane, it formed on August 25 from a tropical wave in the tropical Atlantic Ocean. Within 18 hours of developing, the depression strengthened into Tropical Storm Frances, the sixth named storm of the season. By late the next day, Frances attained hurricane status, and it strengthened further to a major hurricane by August 27. On the following day, Frances became a Category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale, attaining maximum sustained winds of 145 mph (230 km/h). At the time, the hurricane was passing about 135 mi (215 km) north of Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands.
The hurricane slowed and weakened dramatically as it moved across the Bahamas, striking several islands. Wind gusts reached 120 mph (193 km/h) on San Salvador Island. Across the archipelago, Frances left about US$125 million in damage, with 6,682 homes damaged to some degree. Two people died in the Bahamas, one related to drowning and the other due to electrocution. Parts of Grand Bahama remained without power by the time Hurricane Jeanne struck the island in late September. The two hurricanes produced more than $550 million in damage and economic losses, equating to about 10% of the country's gross domestic product. On September 27, Bahamian Prime Minister Perry Christie declared a state of emergency.
Ahead of Frances's landfall in Florida, about 2.8 million people were under evacuation orders across 41 counties. It was the state's largest evacuation at the time. On September 5, Frances moved ashore Hutchinson Island in Florida as a Category 2 hurricane. It produced wind gusts of 108 mph (174 km/h) in Fort Pierce. Frances was the second hurricane of the season to hit the state, just three weeks after Hurricane Charley. Statewide damage totaled over $5 billion, with at least 73,000 homes damaged. Across the state, 4.2 million people lost power, with outages as far west as the Florida panhandle. After moving through central Florida, Frances made a second, weaker landfall along the Florida panhandle.
The storm later moved through the southeastern United States, producing one of the United States' largest tornado outbreaks related to a tropical cyclone. With a frontal boundary moving northward ahead of the storm, the plentiful moisture and wind shear produced intense thunderstorms in Frances's rainbands, leading to 103 tornadoes from Florida to Maryland. The strongest was rated F3 on the Fujita scale, which touched down near Camden, South Carolina, destroying several buildings. It was one of 45 tornadoes in the state, setting a new daily tornado record previously held by 1994's Tropical Storm Beryl. Frances also produced widespread rainfall, peaking at 23.57 in (599 mm) on Mount Mitchell in North Carolina. The total included 16.50 in (419 mm) recorded on September 8. The rains caused river flooding and landslides and damaged 11,107 homes in North Carolina. The combination of winds and rains caused widespread power outages and road closures. Across the United States, Frances led to 48 fatalities, of whom six died due to the hurricane's direct impacts. Nationwide damage totaled $9.507 billion, most of it in Florida. Frances transitioned into an extratropical cyclone as it moved across the northeastern United States, producing additional flooding damage across eastern Canada. The remnants of Frances dissipated over the Gulf of St. Lawrence on September 10.
Meteorological history
A strong tropical wave moved off the west coast of Africa on August 21. It proceeded westward across the Atlantic Ocean, steered by the Azores High, or a ridge of high pressure, to its north. Over the next few days, the wave's convection, or thunderstorms, became better organized. On August 23, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) first noted the potential for tropical cyclogenesis, or formation, within a day or two. At 00:00 UTC on August 25, Tropical Depression Six formed about 755 mi (1,210 km) west-southwest of the Cape Verde islands. With favorable conditions including low wind shear and warm water temperatures, the depression continued to organize as it developed outflow. Late on August 25, the depression strengthened into Tropical Storm Frances, while located approximately 1,420 miles (2,290 km) east of the Lesser Antilles. The next day, an eye feature became apparent. Late on August 26, Frances attained hurricane status, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 km/h).
On August 27, Frances's track slowed and shifted more to the northwest, as an approaching upper-level trough weakened the ridge to its north. That day, Frances became a major hurricane, or a Category 3 on the Saffir-Simpson scale. It underwent an eyewall replacement cycle, in which a larger eye replaced the original eyewall. Late on August 28, Frances reached its first peak as a Category 4 hurricane with winds of 135 mph (215 km/h). The track shifted back to the west-northwest, and another eyewall replacement cycle began on August 29. This caused a brief period of weakening in conjunction with an increase in wind shear. By August 30, the hurricane's maximum sustained winds fell to 115 mph (185 km/h), but it subsequently began restrengthening. On August 31, Frances reached peak winds of 145 mph (230 km/h) while passing about 135 mi (215 km) north of Saint Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Additional eyewall cycles again caused weakening, but Frances remained a Category 4 hurricane between August 31 and September 2, during which time it attained a minimum barometric pressure of 935 mbar (27.6 inHg). Meanwhile, the storm slowed its forward speed, gradually arcing northwestward as it wobbled toward the northwestern Bahamas.
On September 2, Frances again reached peak winds of 145 mph (230 km/h). That day, an increase in wind shear caused the hurricane to weaken appreciably. At 19:30 UTC on September 2, Frances started moving through the Bahamas as it hit San Salvador Island with winds of 125 mph (205 km/h). Over the next two days, the hurricane also struck Cat Island, Eleuthera, and Grand Bahama, the last two as a Category 2 hurricane. A building ridge to Frances's west caused the hurricane to meander across the Bahamas, with a large eye about 50 mi (85 km) in diameter. The storm drifted for several hours near Grand Bahama before resuming a west-northwest motion toward Florida's Treasure Coast. At 04:30 UTC on September 5, Frances made landfall in southeastern Florida at the southern end of Hutchinson Island, with winds of about 105 mph (165 km/h).
Frances weakened rapidly while moving across the state, emerging into the Gulf of Mexico on September 6 as a tropical storm. By that time, the storm had a large circulation with little inner core. At 18:00 UTC on September 6, Frances made another landfall on the Florida panhandle near St. Marks with winds of about 60 mph (95 km/h). The storm moved northward and later northeastward, weakening into a tropical depression near the border of Alabama and Georgia. Frances continued through the southeastern United States, producing a prolific tornado outbreak. On September 9, it transitioned into an extratropical cyclone while over West Virginia. The extratropical system briefly re-attained gale-force winds as it moved through New York. The remnants of Frances crossed over southeastern Canada and northern New England, dissipating over the Gulf of St. Lawrence on September 10.
Preparations
The threat from Hurricane Frances prompted widespread tropical cyclone warnings and watches, beginning on August 29. In the Caribbean, tropical storm warnings were issued as far south as Guadeloupe and as far west as the northern coast of the Dominican Republic. Schools and government offices in the United States Virgin Islands closed during the hurricane's passage. Cruise lines were diverted and ferry service was halted between St. Thomas and St. John. In Puerto Rico, schools, courts, and casinos closed, while more than 14 flights were canceled.
The Turks and Caicos Islands and the Bahamas issued hurricane warnings on August 31, ultimately covering the latter country by September 2. In the Turks and Caicos, the local Red Cross provided sandbags and opened emergency shelters. Across the Bahamas, more than 1,500 people stayed in shelters during the hurricane. The country's main radio station, ZNS-1, informed residents where to seek shelter. The Bahamas Electricity Corporation shut off power lines across most of the Bahamas as a precaution; this limited the eventual power restoration time.
While Frances was near peak intensity over the Bahamas, the NHC forecast that it would move ashore in Florida as a major hurricane. On September 2, the NHC issued hurricane warnings for Florida's east coast from Florida City to Flagler Beach, including Lake Okeechobee. Hurricane warnings were later issued for Florida's west coast from Anna Maria Island to Destin. Tropical storm warnings covered the state as far north as Fernandina Beach and the southern portion of the state, including the Florida Keys. Ahead of the hurricane, Governor Jeb Bush declared a state of emergency for the state. Ultimately, about 2.8 million people were under evacuation orders across 41 counties, which was the state's largest evacuation ever. A traffic death occurred during evacuations near Micanopy, Florida, when a man on I-75 hit a tree. About 108,000 people stayed in one of the hundreds of shelters set up in Florida, Alabama, and Georgia. Several airlines canceled flights in and out of the state, and nine cruise lines had their itineraries altered. Both Kennedy Space Center and Walt Disney World closed during the hurricane, the latter for only the fourth time to date. A Major League Baseball series between the Florida Marlins and Chicago Cubs was postponed. Three college football games were also postponed. Based on purchasing patterns from previous disasters, Walmart rerouted supplies to Florida, anticipating the products that would be needed.
Various National Weather Service offices issued flood or flash flood warnings from Florida to Kentucky, and northeastward to New York. After Frances moved inland and weakened, the Storm Prediction Center issued a tornado watch from Georgia to Pennsylvania. Schools across Georgia were closed. Flights were delayed at Dulles International Airport in Virginia due to the storm.
Impact
Caribbean
While Frances passed north of the Lesser Antilles, it produced peak wind gusts of 37 mph (60 km/h), recorded at Cyril E. King Airport on St. Thomas. The hurricane also produced scattered rainfall in the islands. In Puerto Rico, rainfall reached 2.52 in (64 mm) at Carite Lake. Across the island, the hurricane left about 17,000 people without power and 15,000 people without water. Strong waves caused beach erosion and damage to coastal houses in the northern Dominican Republic. The storm destroyed six houses and forced around 50 people to evacuate their houses.
Hurricane Frances also passed about 40 mi (65 km) northeast of the Turks and Caicos Islands. Grand Turk Island recorded wind gusts of 79 mph (127 km/h). The island lost power during the hurricane, and more than a dozen homes sustained damage. A woman was rescued after the roof blew off her residence.
The hurricane took a slow three-day path through the Bahamas, leading to $125 million in damage and two fatalities. One was an electrocution involving a generator in the capital city, Nassau, and the other was a drowning on Grand Bahama amid the hurricane's storm surge, or rise in ocean waters. Floodwaters reached 8 ft (2.4 m) deep on Grand Bahama. On the island of Mayaguana, the storm surge was estimated at 15 ft (4.6 m) deep. Frances also produced strong winds throughout the Bahamas. Shortly after hitting San Salvador, Frances produced wind gusts of 120 mph (193 km/h) on the island. Rainfall on the island totaled 5.47 in (139 mm). The hurricane also produced sustained winds of 100 mph (161 km/h) in North Eleuthera. Across the Bahamas, Frances damaged 6,682 homes to some degree, resulting in $103.5 million in housing damage. This included 671 homes that were destroyed and 1,851 buildings that sustained enough damage to make them temporarily unusable. More than 800 people were forced to leave their houses, and around 300 people required rescue from rooftops by boat or trucks. Several schools sustained damage, estimated at $25 million. The hurricane also caused more than $12 million in infrastructure damage, affecting docks, roads, and seawalls. About 75% of the island chain lost power for a few hours during the storm. Around 1,300 power poles were knocked down or damaged. The Bahamas also sustained about $45 million in damage to the agriculture and fishing industries. All cool-season vegetable plantings, and the entire banana crop, were lost during Frances. The pineapple crop was significantly impacted by wind damage in Eleuthera, while the entire fruit crop was lost for similar reasons. The corn crop in Long Island and Cat Island was completely lost. There were also significant poultry losses.
On Mayaguana, the hurricane damaged roads, power lines, and the roofs of houses. Along the coast, two boats and a dock were damaged. The island of Inagua temporarily lost power service. Crooked Island lost telephone access during the hurricane. Two houses were wrecked on Acklins, and the island's medical clinic had damage to its roof. On Long Island, floodwaters inundated several houses. About 70% of the houses on Rum Cay had damage to shingles. On San Salvador Island, the hurricane destroyed five homes and damaged the roofs of another 60 houses. Also on the island, the hurricane damaged at least 13% of the non-native Australian pine, primarily from snapping or salt spray. On Cat Island, two houses were destroyed, and most of the island's houses had either shingle damage or power outages.
On Eleuthera, strong winds caused structural damage, and Governor's Harbour was flooded. The winds knocked down trees and satellite dishes on New Providence, home to the capital, Nassau, and the Bahamas' most populous island. Princess Margaret Hospital, the country's largest hospital, evacuated patients due to damage. The roof of a church was damaged while being used as a shelter, forcing the evacuees to move. At nearby Cable Beach, a grocery store lost its roof. In the Andros islands and Berry Islands, the hurricane damaged roofs and power lines. Approximately 50% of residences in Coopers Town and North Abaco on the Abaco Islands sustained damage. Several buildings lost parts of their roofs, including a government building. About 20 homes were flooded in Marsh Harbour, along with two buildings at Marsh Harbour Airport. Several people suffered injuries when the roof of a hospital collapsed in South Abaco; patients were evacuated to Nassau by helicopter. Floodwaters inundated the Grand Bahama International Airport 6 ft (1.8 m) deep, washing away parts of the airport and causing $12 million in damage. Strong winds knocked down trees and damaged roofs on the island. The Rand Memorial Hospital on Grand Bahama had to be evacuated when the roof was damaged. Around 3,000 people in West End were left without water and power. After western Grand Bahama flooded, a group including parliament member Obie Wilchcombe helped rescue about 70 people who became trapped in their residences. In the Bimini islands, the hurricane damaged tree limbs.