&sq=&lang=&file=File:Erin_1995-08-03_1359Z.png) Erin at peak intensity shortly before landfall in Pensacola on August 3 | |
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Formed | July 31, 1995 |
| Dissipated | August 6, 1995 |
| Category 2 hurricane | |
| 1-minute sustained (SSHWS/NWS) | |
| Highest winds | 100 mph (155 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 973 mbar (hPa); 28.73 inHg |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | 16 |
| Damage | $700 million (1995 USD) |
| Areas affected | Bahamas, Jamaica, Eastern United States, Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri |
| IBTrACS | |
Part of the 1995 Atlantic hurricane season | |
Hurricane Erin was the first hurricane to strike the contiguous United States since Hurricane Andrew in 1992. The fifth tropical cyclone, fifth named storm, and second hurricane of the unusually active 1995 Atlantic hurricane season, Erin developed from a tropical wave near the southeastern Bahamas on July 31. Moving northwestward, the cyclone intensified into a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson scale near Rum Cay about 24 hours later. After a brief jog to the north-northwest on August 1, Erin began moving to the west-northwest. The cyclone then moved over the northwestern Bahamas, including the Abaco Islands and Grand Bahama. Early on August 2, Erin made landfall near Vero Beach, Florida, with winds of 85 mph (137 km/h). The hurricane weakened while crossing the Florida peninsula and fell to tropical storm intensity before emerging into the Gulf of Mexico later that day.
Early on August 3, Erin re-intensified into a Category 1 hurricane. Strengthening further, the cyclone very briefly strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane, peaking with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph (160 km/h) as the eyewall moved ashore at Fort Walton Beach, Florida. Erin then weakened slightly to a Category 1 hurricane while brushing the coast of the Florida Panhandle, before making landfall at Pensacola Beach later on August 3 with winds 85 mph (137 km/h). After moving inland, the system quickly weakened to a tropical storm over Mississippi early on August 4 and then to a tropical depression several hours later. Erin proceeded to move northeastward and then eastward across the interior of the Eastern United States, prior to merging with a frontal system in West Virginia on August 6.
The outer bands of Erin caused seven deaths in Jamaica, with five due to a plane crash and the other two after lightning struck two teenage boys. Much of the Bahamas experienced impact from the storm, including all islands between Mayaguana and Grand Bahama. However, damage was generally minor, totaling about $400,000 (1995 USD).[nb 1] In Florida, observation stations recorded sustained winds up to 86 mph (138 km/h) at the Sebastian Inlet and gusts up to 101 mph (163 km/h) at the Pensacola Naval Air Station. Over 1 million people throughout Florida lost electricity during the storm. More than 5,000 homes and buildings suffered some degree of damage, with most in Brevard County and the western Florida Panhandle. Nine deaths occurred in Florida, with six by drowning and three by indirect causes. In Alabama, the storm damaged more than 100 homes throughout the state, as well as 17 schools and 50 to 75 percent of the pecan crops in Baldwin County alone. Several other states reported minor flooding and wind damage. Throughout the United States, Erin caused around $700 million in damage, with much of that incurred in Florida.
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