Hurricane Fifi–Orlene: Difference between revisions

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| Image location=Hurricane Fifi.JPG
| Image location=Hurricane Fifi.JPG
| Image name=Satellite Picture of Fifi
| Image name=Satellite Picture of Fifi
| Formed=September 14, 1974
| Formed=[[September 14]], [[1974]]
| Dissipated=October 10, 1974
| Dissipated=[[October 10]], [[1974]]
| 1-min winds=125
| 1-min winds=125
| Pressurepre=≤
| Pressurepre=≤
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| Inflated=0
| Inflated=0
| Fatalities=8,000 – 10,000 direct (all as Fifi)
| Fatalities=8,000 – 10,000 direct (all as Fifi)
| Areas=[[Honduras]], [[Guatemala]], [[Belize]], southern Mexico (as Fifi), southwestern Mexico (as Orlene)
| Areas=[[Honduras]], [[Guatemala]], [[Belize]], southern [[Mexico]] (as Fifi), southwestern Mexico (as Orlene)
| Hurricane season=[[1974 Atlantic hurricane season]]<br />[[1974 Pacific hurricane season]]
| Hurricane season=[[1974 Atlantic hurricane season]]<br />[[1974 Pacific hurricane season]]
}}
}}
'''Hurricane Fifi''' (or '''Hurricane Fifi-Orlene''') was a catastrophic storm during the [[1974 Atlantic hurricane season]] that made landfall in Belize. Fifi was one of the costliest hurricanes in history, causing $3.7&nbsp;billion (2005 [[United States dollar|USD]]) in damages{{Fact|date=February 2007}}. It was also one of the deadliest Atlantic hurricanes, killing as many as 10,000 people. Fifi was one of several storms that crossed from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean.<ref>Stephen Caparotta, D. Walston, Steven Young and Gary Padgett. [http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/tcfaq/E15.html Subject: E15) What tropical storms and hurricanes have moved from the Atlantic to the Northeast Pacific or vice versa?] Retrieved on 2008-08-07.</ref>
'''Hurricane Fifi''' (or '''Hurricane Fifi-Orlene''') was a catastrophic storm during the [[1974 Atlantic hurricane season]] that made landfall in Belize. Fifi was one of the costliest hurricanes in history, causing $3.7&nbsp;billion (2005 [[United States dollar|USD]]) in damages{{Fact|date=February 2007}}. It was also one of the deadliest Atlantic hurricanes, killing as many as 10,000 people. Fifi was one of several storms that crossed from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean.<ref>Stephen Caparotta, D. Walston, Steven Young and Gary Padgett. [http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/tcfaq/E15.html Subject: E15) What tropical storms and hurricanes have moved from the Atlantic to the Northeast Pacific or vice versa?] Retrieved on [[2008-08-07]].</ref>


==Meteorological history==
==Meteorological history==
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===Hurricane Fifi===
===Hurricane Fifi===
A tropical wave that moved off the coast of Africa on September 8 became a tropical depression in the eastern [[Caribbean Sea]] on September 14. It moved westward, slowly strengthening to a tropical storm on the 16th. Conditions became favorable for further development, and Fifi became a hurricane on the 17th.
A tropical wave that moved off the coast of [[Africa]] on September 8 became a tropical depression in the eastern [[Caribbean Sea]] on September 14. It moved westward, slowly strengthening to a tropical storm on the 16th. Conditions became favorable for further development, and Fifi became a hurricane on the 17th.


Fifi reached a peak of 145&nbsp;[[mph]] (230&nbsp;[[km/h]]) winds, just before skimming the northern coast of [[Honduras]] on the September 18 and 19.<ref name="Data Storm">[http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/hurdat/Data_Storm.html Re-Analysis Project<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> The hurricane made landfall as a Category&nbsp;2 storm in Belize on the 19th, and continued through Guatemala and Mexico as a tropical system. After weakening to a depression, Fifi emerged into the Pacific Ocean, becoming the first crossover storm since [[1971 Atlantic hurricane season#Hurricane Irene|Hurricane Irene-Olivia]] in 1971.
Fifi reached a peak of 145&nbsp;[[mph]] (230&nbsp;[[km/h]]) winds, just before skimming the northern coast of [[Honduras]] on the September 18 and 19.<ref name="Data Storm">[http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/hurdat/Data_Storm.html Re-Analysis Project<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> The hurricane made landfall as a Category&nbsp;2 storm in Belize on the 19th, and continued through Guatemala and Mexico as a tropical system. After weakening to a depression, Fifi emerged into the [[Pacific Ocean]], becoming the first crossover storm since [[1971 Atlantic hurricane season#Hurricane Irene|Hurricane Irene-Olivia]] in 1971.


===Hurricane Orlene===
===Hurricane Orlene===

Revision as of 06:29, 17 November 2008

This article is about the 1974 hurricane; for other storms with this name see Tropical Storm Fifi
Hurricane Fifi-Orlene
Category 4 major hurricane (SSHWS/NWS)
Satellite Picture of Fifi
FormedSeptember 14, 1974
DissipatedOctober 10, 1974
Highest winds1-minute sustained: 145 mph (230 km/h)
Lowest pressure≤ 971 mbar (hPa); 28.67 inHg
Fatalities8,000 – 10,000 direct (all as Fifi)
Damage$900 million (1974 USD)
Areas affectedHonduras, Guatemala, Belize, southern Mexico (as Fifi), southwestern Mexico (as Orlene)
Part of the 1974 Atlantic hurricane season
1974 Pacific hurricane season

Hurricane Fifi (or Hurricane Fifi-Orlene) was a catastrophic storm during the 1974 Atlantic hurricane season that made landfall in Belize. Fifi was one of the costliest hurricanes in history, causing $3.7 billion (2005 USD) in damages[citation needed]. It was also one of the deadliest Atlantic hurricanes, killing as many as 10,000 people. Fifi was one of several storms that crossed from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean.[1]

Meteorological history

Map plotting the storm's track and intensity, according to the Saffir–Simpson scale
Map key
Saffir–Simpson scale
  Tropical depression (≤38 mph, ≤62 km/h)
  Tropical storm (39–73 mph, 63–118 km/h)
  Category 1 (74–95 mph, 119–153 km/h)
  Category 2 (96–110 mph, 154–177 km/h)
  Category 3 (111–129 mph, 178–208 km/h)
  Category 4 (130–156 mph, 209–251 km/h)
  Category 5 (≥157 mph, ≥252 km/h)
  Unknown
Storm type
triangle Extratropical cyclone, remnant low, tropical disturbance, or monsoon depression

Hurricane Fifi

A tropical wave that moved off the coast of Africa on September 8 became a tropical depression in the eastern Caribbean Sea on September 14. It moved westward, slowly strengthening to a tropical storm on the 16th. Conditions became favorable for further development, and Fifi became a hurricane on the 17th.

Fifi reached a peak of 145 mph (230 km/h) winds, just before skimming the northern coast of Honduras on the September 18 and 19.[2] The hurricane made landfall as a Category 2 storm in Belize on the 19th, and continued through Guatemala and Mexico as a tropical system. After weakening to a depression, Fifi emerged into the Pacific Ocean, becoming the first crossover storm since Hurricane Irene-Olivia in 1971.

Hurricane Orlene

The remnants of Fifi encountered a depression and interacted with it. This triggered the development of another system. After it was named Orlene, it paralleled the coast of Mexico before reaching hurricane intensity on September 23. It made landfall near its secondary peak strength on September 23 southeast of Culiacan and dissipated shortly after that.[3]

Impact

Honduras

Fifi, considered a Category 3 hurricane at the time but finally classified as a Category 2 hurricane, skirted the north coast of Honduras, causing massive flooding from the inflow of southerly winds. It was reported that 24"/610 mm of rain fell in 36 hours across northeast Honduras. [4] The rains collected in rivers, which caused enormous amounts of physical and economic damage to poor villages, small towns, and commercial banana plantations when it skimmed Honduras. Most of the country's fishing fleet was destroyed. Roughly half of food crops, including up to 95% of the banana crop, was wiped out. Fourteen bridges were washed away. The cities of Choloma, Omoa, and Trujillo and the island of Roatan were virtually destroyed. The Ulua river valley became a lake about 20 miles wide for several days following Fifi. About 20% of railroad lines survived the cyclone. [4] Although estimates of the number killed range from 3,000 to 10,000, a figure of 8,000 dead is generally accepted. Most deaths appear to have been caused by flash flooding from the rainfall that accompanied the hurricane.

Deadliest Atlantic hurricanes
Rank Hurricane Season Fatalities
1  ?  "Great Hurricane" 1780 22,000–27,501
2  5  Mitch 1998 11,374+
3  2  Fifi 1974 8,210–10,000
4  4  "Galveston" 1900 8,000–12,000
5  4  Flora 1963 7,193
6  ?  "Pointe-à-Pitre" 1776 6,000+
7  5  "Okeechobee" 1928 4,112+
8  ?  "Newfoundland" 1775 4,000–4,163
9  3  "Monterrey" 1909 4,000
10  4  "San Ciriaco" 1899 3,855

Hurricane Fifi is usually considered the fourth deadliest hurricane in history, though uncertainty about the number of deaths caused by Fifi and the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 could place it as the third deadliest ever. Fifi caused a total of $900 million (1974 USD, $3.7 billion 2005 USD) in damage.[5][6]

Mexico

The Orlene part of Hurricane Fifi-Orlene caused no reported casualties.[7] Nothing was reported from ships either, although it is likely to have happened.[7] Rainfall of over 11 inches was reported in Acapulco, however. The storm hit near Mazatlan as a category 2 storm, but no deaths were reported, and damage is unknown.[1]

Retirement

See also: List of retired Atlantic hurricane names

The name "Fifi" was retired following this storm, and won't be used again in this basin, but due to a change to the lists in 1979, there was no replacement name. Fifi was the first category 2 hurricane to be retired until then, and only 2 others joined it since then, which were Hurricane Diana in 1990 and Hurricane Juan in 2003.

See also

Template:Tcportal

References

  1. ^ Stephen Caparotta, D. Walston, Steven Young and Gary Padgett. Subject: E15) What tropical storms and hurricanes have moved from the Atlantic to the Northeast Pacific or vice versa? Retrieved on 2008-08-07.
  2. ^ Re-Analysis Project
  3. ^ Sharon Towry Eastern North Pacific Tropical Cyclones, 1974: Part 2
  4. ^ a b Hurricanes Newspaper Articles Archive
  5. ^ http://www.worldbook.com/wc/popup?path=features/hurricanes&page=html/fifi.htm&direct=yesfact
  6. ^ The Deadliest Atlantic Tropical Cyclones, 1492-1996
  7. ^ a b Robert A. Baum Eastern North Pacific Tropical Cyclones, 1974: Part 1

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hurricane_Fifi–Orlene&oldid=252315350"