Hurricane Floyd Floyd, September 1999
(Click the image to enlarge.)
Overview
Hurricane Floyd impacted the East Coast of the United States from September 14 to 18,
1999. The greatest damages were along the eastern
Carolinas northeast into New Jersey, and adjacent areas northeastward along the east coast into
Maine. Hurricane Floyd produced more human misery and environmental impact in North Carolina
than any disaster in memory. The 15-20 inches of rain that fell across the eastern half of
the state caused every river and stream to flood. There were 57 deaths in the United States
directly attributed to Floyd, and flood
damage estimates range near $6 billion. Many rivers set new flood records. Whole
communities were underwater for days, even weeks in some areas. Thousand's of homes were lost.
Crop damage was extensive. The infrastructure of the eastern counties, mainly roads, bridges,
water plants, etc., was heavily damaged.
Tropical Summary
Floyd’s origin can be traced to a tropical wave that emerged from western Africa on
September 2, 1999. Tropical Depression Eight formed September 7 about 1000 miles east of the
Lesser Antilles). The system was upgraded to Tropical Storm Floyd on September 8.
Floyd became a hurricane at 8 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)on September 10.
Early on September 12, Floyd turned west and began a major strengthening
episode. Hurricane Floyd reached its peak intensity on September 13 when sustained winds
reached 156 miles per hour (mph) and the central pressure dropped to 27.20 inches
of mercury. This was at the top end of Category 4
intensity on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale.
Satellite Imagery of Hurricane Floyd on 1999/09/15 at 2018Z
(Click the image to enlarge.)
Floyd came within 110 miles of Cape Canaveral as it paralleled the Florida coast on
September 15. Floyd then moved slightly east of north and increased in forward speed, coming
ashore near Cape Fear, North Carolina, at 2:30 a.m. on September 16. At the time of landfall,
Floyd was a Category 2 hurricane with maximum winds of 104 mph. Floyd continued to
accelerate north-northeast after landfall. Its center passed over extreme eastern North Carolina
and over Norfolk, Virginia. Floyd then weakened to a tropical storm and moved swiftly along
the coasts of the Delmarva Peninsula and New Jersey, reaching Long Island by 8 p.m.
September 16. The system was extratropical by the time it reached the coast of Maine at
8 a.m. September 17.
Hurricane Floyd Track
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Sustained tropical storm force winds and gusts close to hurricane strength were recorded
at many locations from the Florida Keys to New York. Sustained winds of 96 mph with gusts to
122 mph were measured by a University of Oklahoma portable anemometer (10-meter height)
near Topsail Beach, North Carolina, around 3 a.m. on September 16. Storm surge values as high
as 10 feet were reported along the North Carolina coast.
Heavy Rains and Flooding
Much of Floyd’s impact was due to extreme rainfall. Although Floyd was
moving quickly, its large circulation interacted with a pre-existing frontal zone extending from
central North Carolina through the mid-Atlantic states. This caused the heaviest rainfall to fall
along and left of Floyd’s track. Rainfall totals of 4 to 12 inches were common from northeast
South Carolina through eastern North Carolina, eastern Virginia, eastern Maryland, Delaware,
eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, eastern New York into the Northeast. Within this region, two
areas of extreme rainfall occurred with totals as high as 15 to 20 inches recorded in portions of
eastern North Carolina and southeast Virginia. At Wilmington, North Carolina, the storm total
of 19.06 inches included a 24-hour record of 15.06 inches. In Yorktown, Virginia, the storm
total was 18.13 inches. The second region of extreme rainfall totaled 10 to 14 inches in parts of
Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, southeast Pennsylvania and southeast New York.
Total Precipitation from Hurricane Floyd
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This heavy rainfall caused widespread flooding and flash flooding from northeast South
Carolina to southern New England. The flooding in North Carolina was the most damaging in
the State’s history. Some rivers in eastern North Carolina were already in flood due to 5 to
10 inches of rainfall from Hurricane Dennis which occurred about a week prior to Floyd.
The extreme rainfall produced by Floyd across the Carolinas and Virginia caused widespread
flooding on larger rivers and tributaries as well as flash flooding on smaller streams and creeks.
Nine record floods occurred on rivers in North Carolina and one in Virginia.
Satellite Image of Flooding across Eastern North Carolina
(Click the image to enlarge.)
There were 57 deaths directly attributed to Floyd, 56 in the United States and one in
Grand Bahama Island. North Carolina reported 35 deaths directly attributed to Floyd.
Of the 56 deaths, 48 were due to drowning in inland, freshwater flooding. Vehicle related
deaths accounted for 55 percent of casualties, and of these, about 80 percent were male.
Floyd was the deadliest hurricane in the United States since Agnes of 1972.
Damage estimates as a result of Floyd range around $6 billion. Portions
of ten states were declared major disaster areas, from Florida north to Connecticut. Whole towns
were under water; roads flooded, including portions of Interstate highways; bridges washed out;
dams failed; livestock drowned; water treatment plants failed and water supplies were cut off.
North Carolina alone had damage over $3 billion, with over 7000 homes destroyed,
56,000 homes damaged, 1500 people rescued from flooded areas, and more than 500,000
customers without electricity.
Specifically in North Carolina, there were 35 deaths; 7000 homes destroyed; 17,000 homes uninhabitable; 56,000 homes damaged;
most roads east of I-95 flooded; Tar River crests 24 feet above flood stage; over 1500 people rescued
from flooded areas; over 500,000 customers without electricity at some point; 10,000 people housed in
temporary shelters; much of Duplin and Greene Counties under water; severe agricultural damage
throughout eastern NC; "Nothing since the Civil War has been as destructive to families here,"
says H. David Bruton, the state's Secretary of Health and Human Services...."The recovery process
will be much longer than the water-going-down process"; Wilmington reports new 24-hour station
rainfall record (128 year record) with 13.38 inches and over 19 inches for the event.
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