Hurricane Andrew
Hurricane Andrew was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that struck the Bahamas, Florida, and Louisiana in mid-to-late August 1992, the most destructive hurricane to ever hit Florida until Hurricane Irma surpassed it 25 years later. It was the strongest in decades and the costliest hurricane to make landfall anywhere in the United States until it was surpassed by Katrina in 2005. Andrew caused major damage in the Bahamas and Louisiana, but the greatest impact was felt in South Florida, where the storm made landfall as a Category 5 hurricane, with sustained wind speeds as high as 165 mph (270 km/h). Passing directly through the city of Homestead in Dade County (now known as Miami-Dade County), Andrew stripped many homes of all but their concrete foundations. In total, Andrew destroyed more than 63,500 houses, damaged more than 124,000 others, caused $27.3 billion in damage, and left 65 people dead.
Hurricane Agnes tornado outbreak
On June 18, a tornado touched down around 4:13 p.m. (EDT) near Fort Denaud, which is located near LaBelle in Hendry County. The tornado, killing one person, destroyed a truck and a trailer. The funnel also prostrated citrus trees and caused six injuries near LaBelle. Ten mobile homes were destroyed in two mobile home parks. In all, the tornado affected three mobile home parks and inflicted $200,000 (1972 USD) in property damage. Another tornado, occurring around 10:55 p.m. (EDT), destroyed 50 mobile homes and one fish camp near Okeechobee. This event killed six people and caused damage along a path that reached a width of 100 yards (0.05 mi). These tornadoes were operationally classified as "windstorms" in the official National Weather Service database, which indicated severe thunderstorm winds were responsible for the seven deaths. However, newspaper reports did cite the Okeechobee event as a tornado. Subsequently, an independent case study of the Hurricane Agnes outbreak in 1998 unveiled evidence that the events were two strong (F2–F3) tornadoes. However, the official database still lists the original number of tornadoes.
There were two unconfirmed tornadoes in Collier County. A brief tornado reportedly damaged a roof and two planes in the town of Immokalee. Power lines were downed in the area. Another possible tornado affected Everglades City, where trees were prostrated and portions of a home were transported for 0.25 mile (0.4 km). Lee County was affected by three F2 tornadoes, while an F1 tornado touched down in Seminole County. In all, the tornadoes in Lee, Seminole, and Brevard counties produced damages in excess of $100,000 (1972 USD).
Agnes produced a total of 8–11 strong (F2–F3) tornadoes in Florida. The accuracy of the ratings for many strong tornadoes in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s has been questioned by some authorities. Thomas P. Grazulis states that his criteria yielded fewer strong tornadoes than the official records. The author cites only four strong tornadoes for the Hurricane Agnes tornado outbreak. Only one F3 tornado is listed, while three F2 tornadoes are included in the analysis. The official database lists six F2 events and two F3 events.