Hurricanes and the Making of Caribbean History
The 1899 San Ciriaco hurricane1899 San Ciriaco hurricane hit Puerto Rico, whose economy relied on coffee. The crop had already been facing problems with a decrease in prices and competing countries, but the hurricane wiped out any chance of rebounding from the losses of the previous years. The winds stripped the berries from the trees and the coffee exports of 1899 were only 10 percent of the average export. The losses amounted to 12 million dollars in revenue from 1899 to 1901. This left a dismal outlook on the future for farmers. Sugar was also affected by the storm, although the results were not as drastic. Only a third of the sugar crop could be harvested in 1899, but the soil was reinvigorated. The storm only affected the older haciendas, which would have been retired soon regardless of the hurricane. This allowed for newer technologies to be introduced to the sugar system and U.S. involvement increased. Overall, San Ciriaco helped and hurt the agriculture of Puerto Rico.
List of Category 3 Pacific hurricanes
Within the Northeast Pacific, tropical cyclones generally head west out into the open Pacific Ocean, steered by the westward trade winds. Closer to the end of the season, however, some storms are steered northwards or northeastwards around the subtropical ridge nearer the end of the season, and may bring impacts to the western coasts of Mexico and occasionally even Central America. In the central Pacific basin, the North Pacific High keeps tropical cyclones away from the Hawaiian Islands by forcing them southwards. Combined with cooler waters around the Hawaiian Islands that tend to weaken approaching tropical cyclones, this makes direct impacts on the Hawaiian Islands by tropical cyclones rare.Of the 82 Category 3 hurricanes in the east and central Pacific, a total of 14 made landfall while still a tropical cyclone, collectively resulting in 18 landfalls. As tropical cyclones approach land, they tend to weaken due to land interaction, cooler waters, shallower waters due to shelving, increased vertical wind shear, or dry air. As such, only four of these 14 hurricanes have made landfall while still at Category 3 intensity: Olivia of 1967, Olivia of 1975, Kiko of 1989, and Lane of 2006. Only three made more than one landfall during their lifespan: Hilary of 1993, which made three landfalls, as well as Olivia of 1967 and Fausto of 1996, which made two landfalls each. Only two years – 1971 and 1984 – saw more than one Category 3 hurricane make landfall, though in neither year any of those Category 3 hurricanes made landfall as hurricanes. In the following table, dates where storms made landfall are listed next to the landfall locations.