History of Florida
Hurricane Andrew in August 1992 struck Homestead, just south of Miami, as a Category 5 hurricane, leaving forty people dead, 100,000 homes damaged or destroyed, more than a million people left without electricity, and damages of $20–30 billion. Much of South Florida's sensitive vegetation was severely damaged. The region had not seen a storm of such power in decades. Besides heavy property damage, the hurricane nearly destroyed the region's insurance industry.
1926 Atlantic hurricane season
Throughout the Bahamas, reports of damage were relatively scarce despite the intensity with which the storm struck the region. However, numerous structures were completely destroyed. The storm was attributed to 372 deaths in the Southeastern United States, 114 of which took place in Miami and at least 150 at Moore Haven, where a storm surge estimated as high as overtopped portions of a levee on Lake Okeechobee. Many people in Miami, transients who knew little of hurricanes, perished after examining damage during the passage of the eye, unaware that the back end of the storm was approaching. Flimsy structures built to house workers during the Florida land boom of the 1920s were completely leveled. The hurricane partially contributed to the end of the land boom, which was in decline by early 1926. In terms of monetary losses, damage from the hurricane was estimated to be as high as $125 million (1926 USD). Up to 4,725 structures throughout southern Florida were destroyed and 8,100 damaged, leaving at least 38,000 people displaced. A storm surge of occurred south of Miami and winds on Miami Beach were recorded at before the anemometer blew away. The lowest pressure was estimated at , the seventh most intense in a storm to strike the United States. The storm also produced significant damage, rainfall up to , and a storm surge up to in the Florida Panhandle. The entire state of Florida lost 35% of its grapefruit and orange crops combined, including nearly 100% losses in the Miami area. In a study of hurricane damage statistics conducted in 2008, it was estimated that if a storm similar to that of the Miami hurricane were to occur in 2005 it would result in over $140–157 billion in damage. In all, the storm caused at least 478 deaths along its path accounting for the revised toll in the United States since 2003. The storm's slow movement caused it to produce substantial effects to coastal regions between Mobile and Pensacola; these areas experienced heavy damage from wind, rain, and storm surge. Wind records at Pensacola indicate that the city encountered sustained winds of hurricane force for more than 20 hours, including winds above for five hours. The storm tide destroyed nearly all waterfront structures on Pensacola Bay and peaked at near Bagdad, Florida. Rainfall maximized at Bay Minette, Alabama, where fell.