Hurricane Andrew
Post-analysis on Andrew revealed that the storm was often stronger than operationally reported between early on August 22 and early on August 26. In real time, the National Hurricane Center assessed its peak intensity as , which was upgraded to 155 mph (250 km/h) in a post-storm analysis after the season ended. However, a 2004 paper by Christopher Landsea and others concluded that Andrew became a Category 5 hurricane near the Bahamas on August 23 and reached maximum sustained winds of 175 mph (280 km/h). The paper also indicated that Andrew briefly re-intensified into a Category 5 hurricane around the time of landfall in South Florida early on August 24. The storm was found to have been slightly stronger while approaching Louisiana, but the landfall winds were decreased from 120 mph (195 km/h) to 115 mph (185 km/h).
Meteorological history of Hurricane Andrew
The cyclone weakened slightly before making landfall on Eleuthera later that day and the Berry Islands early on August 24. However, the storm then rapidly, but briefly restrengthened into a Category 5 hurricane, and was at that intensity when it struck Elliott Key and just south of Homestead, Florida on August 24. Andrew weakened while crossing Florida, but only reduced to a Category 4 hurricane while it emerged into the Gulf of Mexico. The storm re-intensified slightly in the Gulf, causing it to maintain its status as a Category 4 hurricane. Early on August 26, Andrew weakened slightly to a low-end Category 3 hurricane before making landfall near Morgan City, Louisiana. Once inland, the cyclone rapidly weakened, and less than 24 hours after landfall, Andrew was merely a tropical depression. It continued northeastward across the Southern United States, before merging with a frontal system on August 28, while centered over the southern Appalachian Mountains.