Hurricane Andrew
Post-analysis on Andrew revealed that the storm was often stronger than operationally reported between early on August 22 and early on August 26. In real time, the National Hurricane Center assessed its peak intensity as , which was upgraded to 155 mph (250 km/h) in a post-storm analysis after the season ended. However, a 2004 paper by Christopher Landsea and others concluded that Andrew became a Category 5 hurricane near the Bahamas on August 23 and reached maximum sustained winds of 175 mph (280 km/h). The paper also indicated that Andrew briefly re-intensified into a Category 5 hurricane around the time of landfall in South Florida early on August 24. The storm was found to have been slightly stronger while approaching Louisiana, but the landfall winds were decreased from 120 mph (195 km/h) to 115 mph (185 km/h).
Effects of Hurricane Andrew in Florida
Late on August 22, a hurricane watch was issued for the East Coast of Florida from Titusville to the Florida Keys, which included Dry Tortugas. On the following day, a hurricane warning was posted from Vero Beach southward to the Florida Keys and included Dry Tortugas. To the north, the east coast of Florida from Vero Beach to Titusville was placed under a tropical storm warning on August 23. Simultaneously, a hurricane watch was issued for the west coast of Florida from Bayport southward to near Flamingo. Later that day, the portion to the south of Venice was upgraded to a hurricane warning and was expanded to include Lake Okeechobee. However, to the north of Venice, the hurricane watch was downgraded to a tropical storm warning. By 1800 UTC on August 24, all watches and warnings issued in anticipation of the storm were discontinued.