Effects of Hurricane Andrew in Florida
Strong winds from the hurricane significantly affected four counties in the state, which damaged or destroyed over 730,000 houses and buildings, while leaving more than 1 million without power. The storm surge impacted portions of Miami-Dade County, peaking at around 16.9 feet (5.2 m) just north of Homestead near the Burger King International Headquarters; the surge caused significant damage to boats and to the Charles Deering Estate. The nationwide maximum rainfall total from the hurricane was 13.98 inches (355 mm) in the western portion of Miami-Dade County. No major flooding was reported in the state. The hurricane caused about $25.3 billion (1992 USD) in damage and 44 deaths in the state—15 directly from the storm's effects and 29 indirectly related. Many other sources, however, estimated that Andrew caused more than $32 billion in damage in the state. Andrew was, at the time, the costliest hurricane in the history of the United States; it was surpassed in subsequent years by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Hurricane Ike in 2008, Hurricane Sandy in 2012, and hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria in 2017.
Hurricane Hugo
The storm caused $7 billion in damage in the United States, surpassing Hurricane Frederic of 1979 as the costliest tropical cyclone in that country. Hugo itself was surpassed by Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and several others over the next few decades. South Carolina suffered the worst impact, where Hugo made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane. In that state alone, 3,307 single family homes were destroyed, 18,171 were inflicted major damage, and 56,580 sustained minor impact, while more than 12,600 mobile homes and 18,000 multi–family houses were either damaged or destroyed. Losses reached at least $5.9 billion and there were thirty-five fatalities reported in South Carolina. There was also significant impact in North Carolina, where 205 structures were destroyed, 1,149 were severely damaged, and 2,638 suffered minor losses. One fatality occurred and damage in North Carolina reached about $1 billion.