 Frances near peak intensity north of Puerto Rico on August 31 | |
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Formed | August 24, 2004 |
| Extratropical | September 8, 2004 |
| Dissipated | September 10, 2004 |
| Category 4 major hurricane | |
| 1-minute sustained (SSHWS/NWS) | |
| Highest winds | 145 mph (230 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 935 mbar (hPa); 27.61 inHg |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | 50 |
| Damage | $10.1 billion (2004 USD) |
| Areas affected |
|
| IBTrACS | |
Part of the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season | |
Hurricane Frances was the second most intense tropical cyclone in the Atlantic during 2004 and proved to be very destructive in Florida. It was the sixth named storm, the fourth hurricane, and the third major hurricane of the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season. The system crossed the open Atlantic in late August, moving to the north of the Lesser Antilles while strengthening. Its outer bands struck Puerto Rico and the British Virgin Islands while passing north of the Caribbean Sea. The storm's maximum sustained winds peaked at 145 mph (233 km/h), achieving Category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. As the system's forward motion slowed, the eye passed over San Salvador Island and very close to Cat Island in the Bahamas. Frances was the first hurricane to impact the entire Bahamian archipelago since 1928 and almost completely destroyed their agricultural economy.
Frances then passed over the central sections of Florida, three weeks after Hurricane Charley, causing significant damage to the state's citrus crop, closing major airports and schools, and forcing the cancellation of a collegiate football game. The storm then moved briefly offshore from Florida, into the northeast Gulf of Mexico, and made a second U.S. landfall, on the Florida Panhandle, before accelerating northeast through the eastern United States near the Appalachians and into Atlantic Canada while weakening. A significant tornado outbreak accompanied the storm across the eastern United States, nearly equaling the outbreak from Hurricane Beulah. Very heavy rains fell in association with this slow-moving and relatively large hurricane, which caused floods in Florida and North Carolina. 50 people died and damages totaled US$10.1 billion (2004 dollars).