Hurricane Impacts USGS Science Priorities
• Hurricanehazardsincludeintensewind,highwaves,strongcurrents,flooding,stormsurge,tornadoes,landslides,andcoastalerosion.
• Stormsurge,adomeofoceanwater,canexceed20feetinheightandextendalongshorefor100miles.
• HurricanescanaffecttheNation’senergysupply;morethanone-fourthofU.S.crudeoilproductionisfromtheGulfofMexico.
• Hurricanesoftenleaveanareamorevulnerabletosubsequentstorms.
• Developabilitytomakenearreal-timemapsforemergencyplanningandresponse
• Increaseabilitytorecordhurricaneimpactandrecoveryofnaturalsystems
• Useairborneandotherremotesens-ingtechniqueswithhurricaneresponsemodelstoimprovecoastalmappingandtopredictwherebarrierislandsandevacuationrouteswilllikelybeseveredorwashedoverinanapproachinghur-ricane
• Expandthenetworkofnearreal-timestreamgagesforfloodforecasting
• Developanecologicalalertsystembasedonahurricane’spotentialtospreadwildlifediseasesandinvasivespecies
U.S. Department of the InteriorU.S. Geological Survey
Fact Sheet 2005-3121October 2005Printed on recycled paper
The number of hurricanes expected to occur during a 100-year period based on historical data—light blue area, 20 to 40; dark blue area, 40 to 60; red area, more than 60. Map not to scale. Source: the National Atlas and the USGS
Hurricane Hazards—A National ThreatA Population in Jeopardy
Hurricanesbringdestructivewinds,stormsurge,torrentialrain,flooding,andtornadoes.Asinglestormcanwreakhavoconcoastalandinlandcommunitiesandonnaturalareasoverthousandsofsquaremiles.
In2005,HurricanesKatrina,Rita,andWilmademonstratedthedevastationthathurricanescaninflictandtheimpor-tanceofhurricanehazardsresearchandpreparedness.
MorethanhalfoftheU.S.popula-tionliveswithin50milesofacoast,andthisnumberisincreasing.Manyoftheseareas,especiallytheAtlanticandGulfcoasts,willbeinthedirectpathoffuturehurricanes.Hawaiiisalsovulnerabletohurricanes.
Losing Land and PropertyAsseasidepopulationsanddevelop-
mentescalate,sodoespropertydamagefromhurricanes.RecentAtlantichur-ricaneseasonshavebeenthecostliestonrecord,withlossesof$42billionin2004andinthehundredsofbillionsin2005.
ResearchsuggeststhatAmericansshouldbraceformoreofthesame,becausetheAtlanticbasinisinanactiveperiodthatmightpersistfordecades.
Hurricane Katrina caused billions of dollars in damage and killed hundreds in August 2005.
Hurricane potential in the United States and Puerto Rico
USGS Science Helps Build Safer Communities
Hurricane Facts• Hurricanesarerevolvingstormsoriginatingneartheequatorthatare
accompaniedbytorrentialrainandwindspeedsexceeding74mph.
• IntheAtlanticandeasternPacific,includingHawaii,thesewhirlingstormsarecalledhurricanes.InthewesternPacific,includingEastAsiaandAustralia,theyaretyphoons.IntheIndianOcean,theyarecyclones.
• TheSaffir-SimpsonHurricaneScaleexpressesahurricane’sstrengthbyitssustainedwindspeed—Category1:74-95mph;Category2:96-110mph;Category3:111-130mph;Category4:131-155mph;Category5:inexcessof155mph.AugustandSeptemberarethepeakmonthsofthehurricaneseason,whichlastsfromJune1toNovember30.
• Hurricanescanbeasmuchas400mileswide.
• The1938NewEnglandhurricanewasthecostliestnaturaldisasterofitstime,withabout$3billionindamage.LossesfromHurricaneHugo,whichhitSouthCarolinain1989,werealmost$11billion.HurricaneAndrewin1992destroyedmorethan$20billioninproperty.Allfiguresarein2005dollars.
• ThedeadliestnaturaldisasterinU.S.historywasthe1900Galvestonhurricane,whichtookanestimated8,000lives.Sixofthe10costliestU.S.disastersresultedfromtropicalweathersystems.
BarrierislandsandcoastalwetlandsarethefirstlineofdefenseformanyAtlanticandGulfcoastcommunities,andmanyarerapidlyeroding.
Sincethe1930s,Louisianahaslostabout1,900squaremilesofcoastallandfromsubsidence,inundation,anderosionduringhurricanes.HurricaneKatrinaeliminatedmorethan100squaremilesofwetlandsprotectingNewOrleans.In2004,HurricaneIvanerodedAlabama’scoastanaverageof40feet.
Coordinated Federal EffortsTheNationalOceanicandAtmo-
sphericAdministration(NOAA)isresponsibleforforecasting,tracking,pre-dictingthelandfallof,andissuingwarn-ingsforhurricanesandtropicalstormsintheUnitedStatesanditsterritoriestothepublic,themedia,andothergovernmentagenciesandauthorities.Sciencetofore-casthurricaneimpactsisacollaborativeeffortamongtheU.S.GeologicalSurvey(USGS),NOAA,theNationalAeronau-ticsandSpaceAdministration,theU.S.ArmyCorpsofEngineers,andothers.
USGS Science Can HelpBeforeahurricanemakeslandfall,the
USGSensuresthatequipmentalongtheGulfandAtlanticcoastsisreadytomoni-torcoastalchange.AUSGSnetworkof
For More Information http://www.nwrc.usgs.gov/hurricane/hurr2001.htm/
http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/hurricanes/
http://www.usgs.gov/
streamgagesalsoreportsreal-timestreamflowtoofficialsissuingfloodwarnings.
USGSgeospatialdatabasesandmapsassistpre-stormevacuationplanningandpost-stormrescueandrecovery.
Beforeandaftermajorstorms,scientistssurveyhabitatsanddocumenterosiononcoastsandbarrierislandsbyusingairborneandsatelliteimagery.TheUSGSdeploysamphibiousaircrafttoconductenvironmentalassessmentsandtoaidemergencyresponse.
ImmediatelyafterHurricaneKatrina,theUSGSusedsatelliteandaerialimagerytocreatemapslinking911callstolocationswherepeopleneededtoberescued.USGSscientistsalsoassistedFederalandStateagenciesbyconductingwaterqualityandsedimenttestingtoindi-catethesafetyofwaterforhumancontact.
Scientistsalsocompletegroundsur-veystohelplandmanagerswithhabitatandwildlifeimpactassessmentsandtosecurescientificequipmentinremotefieldsites.
TheUSGSprovidesscientificresearchandanalysesthathelpthepublic,policymakers,andtheemergencymanagementcommunitymakeinformeddecisionsonhowtoprepareforandreacttohurricanehazardsandreducelossesfromfuturehurricanes.
These images are from New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in August 2005. (USGS photos)
