 Irma at peak intensity while making landfall in Saint Martin on September 6 | |
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Formed | August 30, 2017 |
| Remnant low | September 12, 2017 |
| Dissipated | September 13, 2017 |
| Category 5 major hurricane | |
| 1-minute sustained (SSHWS/NWS) | |
| Highest winds | 180 mph (285 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 914 mbar (hPa); 26.99 inHg |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | 134 total |
| Damage | $77.2 billion (2017 USD) (Seventh-costliest tropical cyclone on record; costliest in Cuban history) |
| Areas affected | Cape Verde, Leeward Islands (especially Barbuda, Saint Barthélemy, Anguilla, Saint Martin and the Virgin Islands), Greater Antilles (Cuba and Puerto Rico), Turks and Caicos Islands, Jamaica, The Bahamas, Eastern United States (especially Florida) |
| IBTrACS | |
Part of the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season | |
| History
Effects
Other wikis | |
Hurricane Irma was an extremely powerful and devastating tropical cyclone that was the first Category 5 hurricane to strike the Leeward Islands on record, followed by Maria two weeks later. At the time, it was considered the most powerful hurricane on record in the open Atlantic region, outside of the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, until it was surpassed by Hurricane Dorian two years later. It was also the third-strongest Atlantic hurricane at landfall ever recorded, just behind the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane and Dorian.[1] The ninth named storm, fourth hurricane, second major hurricane,[nb 1] and first Category 5 hurricane of the extremely active 2017 Atlantic hurricane season, Irma caused widespread and catastrophic damage throughout its long lifetime, particularly in the northeastern Caribbean and the Florida Keys. It was also the most intense hurricane to strike the continental United States since Katrina in 2005, the first major hurricane to make landfall in Florida since Wilma in the same year, and the first Category 4 hurricane to strike the state since Charley in 2004. The word Irmageddon was coined soon after the hurricane to describe the damage caused by the hurricane.[3]
Irma developed from a tropical wave near the Cape Verde Islands on August 30. Favorable conditions allowed Irma to rapidly intensify into a Category 3 hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson wind scale by late on August 31. The storm's intensity fluctuated between Categories 2 and 3 for the next several days, due to a series of eyewall replacement cycles. On September 4, Irma resumed intensifying, becoming a Category 5 hurricane by early on the next day. Early on September 6, Irma peaked with 1-minute sustained winds of 180 mph (290 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 914 hPa (27.0 inHg). Irma was the second-most intense tropical cyclone worldwide in 2017 in terms of barometric pressure, and the strongest worldwide in 2017 in terms of wind speed. Another eyewall replacement cycle caused Irma to weaken back to a Category 4 hurricane, but the storm re-attained Category 5 status before making landfall in Cuba. Although Irma briefly weakened to a Category 2 storm while making landfall on Cuba, the system re-intensified to Category 4 status as it crossed the warm waters of the Straits of Florida, before making landfall on Cudjoe Key on September 10. Irma then weakened to Category 3 status, prior to another landfall in Florida on Marco Island later that day. The system degraded into a remnant low over Alabama and ultimately dissipated on September 13 over Missouri.
The storm caused catastrophic damage in Barbuda, Saint Barthélemy, Saint Martin, Anguilla, and the Virgin Islands as a Category 5 hurricane. The hurricane caused at least 134 deaths: one in Anguilla; one in Barbados; three in Barbuda; four in the British Virgin Islands; 10 in Cuba; 11 in the French West Indies; one in Haiti; three in Puerto Rico; four on the Dutch side of Sint Maarten; 92 in the contiguous United States, and four in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Hurricane Irma was the top Google searched term in the U.S. and globally in 2017.[4]
- ^ "Atlantic hurricane best track (HUDRAT version 2)". United States National Hurricane Center. May 25, 2020.
- ^ Christopher W. Landsea (June 2, 2011). "A: Basic Definitions". In Neal M. Dorst (ed.). Hurricane Research Division: Frequently Asked Questions. Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory. A3) What is a super-typhoon? What is a major hurricane ? What is an intense hurricane ?. Archived from the original on June 15, 2006. Retrieved May 4, 2013.
- ^ "Irmageddon: Thousands of Miamians Just Had Their First Taste of Hurricane Misery". Miami New Times. September 13, 2017. Archived from the original on January 26, 2019. Retrieved January 25, 2019.
- ^ Amy Gesenhues (December 13, 2017). "Hurricane Irma was the No. 1 top trending Google search in the US & globally for 2017". Search Engine Land. Archived from the original on March 26, 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
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