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.
1859 Atlantic hurricane season
Beginning on October 16, ships throughout the central Bahamas experienced squally conditions accompanied by strong winds. Based on those reports, this storm was documented in 1995 as a west-northwestward-moving system. One ship ran aground on Paradise Island and another suffered a similar fate in the Abaco Islands. Continuing westward, the storm made landfall near modern day Boca Raton, Florida, with winds of 70 mph (110 km/h) at 16:00 UTC on October 17. The system was last noted near present day Arcadia early the following day.
A low pressure area developed over the Bay of Campeche between October 23 and October 24, with a tropical storm forming on the latter date. At least four other ships in that portion of the Gulf of Mexico sustained appreciable structural damage. One ship capsized in the storm with all hands lost except one seaman, who was picked up on November 2 by a passing vessel. The survivor said he was stranded on the wreck for five days, indicating that his ship went down on October 28. Stormy weather was reported near Bermuda. Partagás and Diaz used these reports to create a track for the storm. Initially, the storm drifted north-northeastward and northeastward. By 12:00 UTC on October 26, it was estimated that the system became a hurricane and intensified slightly further to peak at winds of 90 mph (150 km/h). Shortly thereafter, the hurricane began accelerating east-northeastward due to a cold front. At 18:00 UTC on October 28, the storm made landfall near St. Petersburg, Florida. A barometric pressure of was observed, the lowest in relation to the storm. The storm emerged in the Atlantic less than six hours later and transitioned into an extratropical cyclone early on October 29.