Meteorological history of Hurricane Andrew
In 2002, the "Atlantic Basin Hurricane Database Reanalysis Project" examined Hurricane Andrew and this corridor of extreme winds embedded within Andrew's northern eyewall. The project concluded that Category 5 conditions on land occurred only in a small region of southern Dade (now Miami-Dade) County, specifically close to the coast in Cutler Ridge. The remaining areas affected by Andrew's initial landfall in Florida likely experienced sustained Category 4 and 3 hurricane conditions. Andrew was officially re-classified as a Category 5 storm in 2004, and the reanalysis provided a more comprehensive and detailed examination of Andrew's wind field structure upon landfall than originally assessed in 1992.
Effects of Hurricane Andrew in Florida
On Interstate 95 and Florida's Turnpike, bumper-to-bumper traffic was reported for more than and was regarded as probably the largest traffic jam in the history of Florida. Numerous tourists and evacuees completely occupied hotels and motels as far north as Ocala. At Walt Disney World, a reservation clerk noted that all 15,739 hotel rooms on the property were booked. United States Coast Guard vessels along the coast were either secured onshore or sent to ride out the storm at sea.