Hurricane Irene
Pay attention: Hurricanes are known as ‘typhoons’ in the western Pacific, ‘cyclones’ in the Indian Ocean, ‘baguios’ in the Philippines and willy-willies in Australia.
Highest Storm Surge (sea waves swell): Bathurst Bay Hurricane, Australia, 1899. It was 13 meters (42 feet)!
Deadliest: Bangladesh Cyclone of 1970. It killed 300,000 people.
The deadliest hurricane in the United States struck Galveston, Texas, in 1900. A storm surge almost two stories high broke over the city, causing 20-foot (6.1-meter) floods and more than 8,000 deaths
Largest Rainfalls: Tropical Cyclone Denise, January 1966, 12 hours, 1144 millimeters – La Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean off the east coast of Africa.
Costliest Hurricane: Hurricane Andrew in 1992. The damage was estimated at $25 billion in parts of Florida, Louisiana, and Georgia.
Longest Lasting Tropical Cyclone: Typhoon John, August-September, 1994, lasted 31 days. Traveled both the Northeast and Northwest Pacific basins.
Largest Tropical Cyclone: Typhoon Tip Northwest Pacific, October, 1979, gale radius 1100 km..
Fastest Intensification: Typhoon Forrest – deepened 100 millibars (976 to 876) in under 24 hours. In one day winds increased from 120 kph to 277 kph.
