Hurricane Dennis From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Hurricane Dennis Category 4 major hurricane (SSHWS/NWS) Hurricane Dennis 09 july 2005 1845Z.jpg Hurricane Dennis as a Category 4 hurricane in the Formed July 4, 2005 Dissipated July 11, 2005 (Extratropical after July 10, 2005) Highest winds 1-minute sustained: 150 mph (240 km/h) Lowest pressure 930 mbar (hPa); 27.46 inHg Fatalities 42 direct, 47 indirect Damage $4 billion (2005 USD) Areas affected , , , , , , , Ge orgia, Tennessee and Valley regions Part of the 2005 season Hurricane Dennis was an early-forming major hurricane in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico during the very active 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. Dennis was the fourth named storm, second hurricane, and first major hurricane of the season. I n July, the hurricane set several records for early season hurricane activity be coming the strongest Atlantic hurricane ever to form before August; a title it h eld for only six days before being surpassed by . Dennis hit Cuba twice as a Category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale, and made landfall on the in the United States as a Cate gory 3 storm less than a year after did so. Dennis caused at leas t 89 deaths (42 direct) in the U.S. and Caribbean and caused $2.23 billion (2005 USD) in damages to the United States, as well as an approximately equal amount of damage in the Caribbean, primarily on Cuba. Contents [hide] 1 Meteorological history 2 Preparations 3 Impact 3.1 Caribbean 3.2 United States 3.3 Retirement 4 See also 5 References 6 External links Meteorological history[edit] Map plotting the track and intensity of the storm according to the SaffirSimpson hurricane wind scale Hurricane Dennis began as Tropical Depression Four in the southeastern on the evening of July 4, the first storm of the season to form away from M exico and Central America. Almost immediately, it made landfall on Grenada as a tropical depression with 30 mph (48 km/h) winds.[1] On the morning of July 5, it strengthened into Tropical Storm Dennis in the eastern Caribbean; at the time, this was the earliest formation of an Atlantic season's fourth storm (by compari son, during the 2004 season, Hurricane Alex formed in early August and made landfall in Cuba on August 12), although this record was later sur passed when Tropical Storm Debby formed on 23 June 2012. The newly named Dennis began moving rapidly to the west-northwest.[1] It was clear from early weather forecasting models that Dennis had the potential to be a major storm, and it was already predicted to reach hurricane status whi le it was still a tropical depression.[2] It reached hurricane strength on the a fternoon of July 6 while approaching the southern coast of , and it qu ickly became a strong and well-organized Category 1 storm on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale.[1] The next day it strengthened rapidly to become a Category 4 major hurricane, the earliest in an Atlantic hurricane season that a storm had r eached that strength since in the 1957 season. After rapid stre ngthening, Dennis's track became slightly more northerly, bringing it between Ja maica and Haiti by July 7; both countries experienced high winds and heavy rain. [1] As it approached Cuba and strengthened to just under Category 5 intensity, D ennis's track began to wobble. Meteorologists from the National Hurricane Center (NHC) stated, "this type of erratic motion is not unusual for intensifying majo r hurricanes."[3] On July 7, Hurricane warnings were issued for Cuba at 11 am ED T (1500 UTC). Dennis made landfall near Punta dal Inglés with 140 mph (220 km/h) w inds late that day, and dropped down to a Category 3 storm while crossing the pe ninsula. As it moved back into the Gulf of Guacanayabo, its wind speed increased to a peak of 150 mph (240 km/h). Dennis then slammed into south-central Cuba ju st west of Punta Mangles Altos on July 8, again with 140 mph (220 km/h) winds.[1 ]

Hurricane Dennis on July 7, 2005 at 1550 UTC, beginning to pass to the north of Jamaica. Jamaica, eastern Cuba, and Hispaniola are all obscured by the storm. Crossing Cuba's mountainous terrain disrupted the storm's circulation, weakening Dennis to Category 1 intensity.[4] However, NHC forecasts continued to indicate the possibility of a rebound to Category 4 status after convection was re-estab lished, and because conditions remained favorable. This prediction was borne out when Dennis rapidly reintensified on the afternoon of July 9 over the Gulf Loop Current, a reintensification described by NHC as having occurred "at a rate tha t bordered on insane."[5] The storm reached Category 4 intensity again on the mo rning of July 10. At 1200 UTC, the storm reached its peak intensity of 930 mbar (27.47 inHg), surpassing Hurricane Audrey and setting a new record for the stron gest storm to form prior to August; the new record stood for only six days befor e Hurricane Emily surpassed it by reaching a pressure of 929 mbar (27.43 inHg).[ 1] The storm continued moving north-northwest towards the central Gulf Coast, which had seen the landfalls of Tropical Storm Arlene in June and the previous week. By the morning of July 10, hurricane warnings were in effect in the U.S. for the Florida Panhandle, Alabama, and Mississippi, with tropical stor m warnings extending further east and west along the coast. The NHC predicted a landing at near full strength in the late afternoon. However, much like Hurrican e Ivan which struck in the same area the previous year, the storm weakened just before landfall; its maximum sustained winds dropped from 145 mph (235 km/h, Cat egory 4 strength) to 125 mph (195 km/h, Category 3 strength).[1] Continental landfall occurred at Santa Rosa Island, between Pensacola, Florida, and Navarre Beach, Florida, at 2:25 pm CDT (1925 UTC) on July 10. Dennis was a C ategory 3 hurricane with winds of 120 to 125 mph (185 to 195 km/h). The highest official wind speed reported was a 121 mph (195 km/h) wind gust at Navarre Beach .[6] The storm lost strength over the day and was a tropical depression by early on July 11. The depression persisted, however, and gained a little strength whi le stalled over Illinois the next day. It finally dissipated in on July 13, with advisories ceasing a full three days after landfall. Preparations[edit] Combined with Hurricane Cindy's landfall on the Gulf Coast of the United States, uncertainty over Dennis's final landfall helped push oil prices to a record hig h of $61.28 a barrel on July 6, and again to $61.50 on July 7, although they dro pped below $60 on July 8. Dennis was originally forecast to strike , on e of the oil-producing regions of the Gulf coast. Speculative spikes in oil pric es due to Hurricane Dennis foreshadowed the far greater price spikes caused by H urricanes Katrina and Rita in late August and September. In Haiti officials evacuated residents along the coastline, but noted that many were not obliging.[7] In Cuba more than 600,000 residents were moved from their homes to government shelters or other locations in anticipation of Dennis.[8] Al l schools were closed, and most flights in the country were suspended or cancell ed.[9] In the United States, the governors of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisia na all declared states of emergency in their states. At 6 am CDT (2300 UTC) on J uly 9, 2005, all southbound lanes on from Mobile to Montgomery, Al abama, were closed. Traffic was redirected, making all four lanes northbound to allow evacuations.[10] In Alabama residents in all parts of Mobile County, and t hose south of I-10 in Baldwin County, were ordered to evacuate.[11] Similar orde rs were issued in Mississippi for parts of Jackson, Hancock, and Harrison counti es; and for coastal areas in the Florida Panhandle stretching from Escambia Coun ty to Bay County.[11] Likewise, military installations such as NAS Pensacola, Wh iting Field, Eglin AFB, and Tyndall AFB were all evacuated days b efore the storm. Additionally, Red Cross officials opened 87 shelters across the state which were able to hold about 14,000 evacuees.[10] In Florida, about 50,000 tourists in the Keys were forced to evacuate by July 8. [12] The MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa evacuated its aircraft to McConnell Air Force Base near Wichita, Kansas.[13] 700,000 people in the Florida panhandle we re evacuated in the days prior to Dennis, 100,000 of them in Escambia County alo ne.[14] As a result of the large evacuations, more than 200 truckloads provided about 1.8 million gallons of gasoline.[15] The Red Cross also moved 60 mobile ca nteens capable of serving 30,000 hot meals each a day to the staging points of H attiesburg and Jackson. National guardsmen were mobilized, and four emergency me dical teams, each capable of setting up a small field hospital, were on standby. Also, at , about 20,000 military personnel were evacuated, and at Hurlburt Field, home to Air Force's 16th Special Operations Wing, a manda tory evacuation was ordered for all 15,000 airmen and their families.[16] Impact[edit] Deaths from Hurricane Dennis Country Total State State total County County total Direct deaths Cuba 16 16 Haiti 56 22 Jamaica 1 0 USA 15 Florida 14 Broward 3 1 Charlotte 3 0 Escambia 1 0 Monroe 1 1 Nassau 1 1 Walton 1 0 Unknown 4 0 1 DeKalb 1 1 Totals 89 42 Because of differing sources, totals may not match. Hurricane Dennis caused US$4 6 billion and at least 89 deaths in its path past H aiti, Jamaica, Cuba, and the United States. Caribbean[edit] Main article: Effects of Hurricane Dennis in Jamaica Dennis first affected Jamaica while still a weak storm. One person was killed th ere and damage was estimated at $32 million US$.[1] In Haiti, the Pan American Health Organization reports that 56 deaths and 36 inj uries occurred; the storm also destroyed 929 homes and damaged another 3,000, le aving 1,500 families homeless.[17] Among the dead were 16 who were killed when a bridge collapsed during the hurricane.[8] Furthermore, 24 persons are still lis ted as missing. From there the storm moved to Cuba, leaving 16 people dead and $1.4 billion in d amages as it roared through the island, flattening houses and downing trees and power lines. Heavy rainfall fell across the country, with amounts reaching up to 1092 mm/42.99 inches, making Dennis the wettest storm for the island since Hurr icane Flora of 1963.[18] According to reports from the Cuban government, 120,000 homes were damaged, 15,000 of which were destroyed. The citrus and vegetable in dustries were also devastated as Cuba's primary agricultural regions were the ha rdest hit. Nonetheless, publicly refused US aid after the storm in protest of the ongoing US trade embargo against Cuba, stating that, "If they off ered $1 billion we would say no."[19] Relayed reports from Cuban meteorologists stated that a gust up to 149 mph (239 km/h) was detected at , 85% of t he power lines were down, and extensive damage to the communications infrastruct ure had occurred. Dennis was more destructive than the previous year's Hurricane Charley and was widely regarded as the worst hurricane to strike Cuba since Hur ricane Flora in the 1963 season. United States[edit] A beachfront home in Navarre Beach, Florida largely destroyed by Hurricane Denni s. Main articles: Effects of Hurricane Dennis in Florida, Effects of Hurricane Denn is in Alabama, Effects of Hurricane Dennis in Georgia and Effects of Hurricane D ennis in Mississippi In the United States, damage was not as high as originally expected, mainly beca use Dennis was more compact and moved more quickly than initially forecast. Denn is made landfall approximately 30 miles (48 km) to the east of where Hurricane I van had made landfall 10 months before, but did not cause as much damage as Ivan , due to its quicker speed, compact size, and because the area was not fully reb uilt. Dennis moved about 7 mph (11 km/h) faster than Ivan at landfall, and had h urricane-force winds that only extended 40 miles (65 km) from its center, compar ed to Ivan's 105 miles (170 km/h).[8][20] During the height of the storm, Dennis produced storm surges as high as 9 ft (3 m) in the Apalachee Bay region, and as high as 7 ft (2 m) on the Florida Panhandle,[21] and left 680,000 customers wit hout electricity in four southern states. In southern Florida, damage was mostly limited to moderate wind gusts; in - Dade County, gusty winds knocked out several traffic lights along U.S. 1, the on ly route to and from the .[22] A man died in Ft. Lauderdale when he stepped on a downed electrical wire and was electrocuted.[23] Damage was mostly minor and limited to outer rainbands and tornadoes in . In the Ta mpa Bay area, several tornadoes were reported to have touched down causing minor damage such as downed trees and power lines.[24] The most severe damage occurre d on the Florida Panhandle. At Navarre Beach, sustained winds of 98 miles per ho ur (158 km/h) were reported with a peak gust of 121 miles per hour (195 km/h), w hile a tower at the Pensacola Airport reported sustained winds of 82 miles per h our (132 km/h) and a peak gust of 96 miles per hour (154 km/h).[1] Milton receiv ed 7.08 inches (180 mm) of rain, the highest reported rainfall total in Florida caused by Dennis.[25] No significant damage was reported to most structures; how ever, insurers initially estimated that Dennis caused $3$5 billion in insured dam age,[26] or approximately $6$10 billion total (insured damage estimates are gener ally held to be approximately one-half of total damages). However, the NHC's Tro pical Cyclone Report reported total damage in the United States as only $2.23 bi llion with $1.115 billion of insured damage.[1] In Alabama, sustained winds reached minimal hurricane force in the interior of t he state.[27] In total, 280,000 people in Alabama experienced power outages duri ng the storm.[28] No deaths occurred, although Dennis caused three injuries[29] and total damage amounted to $127 million (2005 USD),[29] mostly due to structur al damage. There was also severe damage to cotton crops.[30] In Mississippi, dam age was not as severe as previously anticipated.[31] As Dennis impacted the stat e, a storm tide of 2 ft (0.61 m)4 ft (1.2 m) above normal was reported.[1] Rainfa ll from the hurricane averaged between 15 inches (25125 mm),[32][33] and minimum b arometric pressure of 994.2 mb was reported near Pascagoula.[1] Wind gusts peake d at 59 mph (95 km/h) causing several hundred trees to uproot or snap, damaging a total of 21 homes and businesses.[33]

Flooding caused by Dennis on Sweetwater Creek in Lithia Springs, Georgia Dennis caused at least 10 tornadoes in the U.S., although only one of them reach ed F1 status on the Fujita scale.[1] The storm dropped over 10 inches (250 mm) o f rain in some areas of Alabama and Georgia (see the rainfall graphic). Parts of Georgia, which had received heavy rain just days earlier from Hurricane Cindy, suffered heavy flooding, and flash-floods were reported on the outskirts of the metropolitan area.[not in citation given][34] In the United States, 15 storm-related deaths (14 in Florida) were reported, inc luding one in Walton County,[35] three in Broward County,[1][36] three in Charlo tte County, one each in Nassau and Escambia Counties[36] and one in Decatur, Geo rgia.[37] In the Gulf of Mexico, the storm caused Thunder Horse PDQ, a BP oil ri g about 150 miles (240 km) southeast of New Orleans, Louisiana, to severely list .[38] Retirement[edit] See also: List of retired Atlantic hurricane names Because of the great amount of damage and deaths in the Caribbean and United Sta tes, the name Dennis was retired in the spring of 2006 and will never be used fo r an Atlantic hurricane again. It was replaced by Don on List III of the 2011 At lantic hurricane season.[39] See also[edit] Portal icon Tropical cyclones portal Center for Natural Hazards Research at East Carolina University List of Florida hurricanes (2000present) List of retired Atlantic hurricane names List of wettest tropical cyclones by country#Cuba since 1963 List of wettest tropical cyclones in the United States List of Category 4 Atlantic hurricanes References[edit] ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j k l m n National Hurricane Center. "Tropical C yclone Report: Hurricane Dennis" (PDF). NOAA. Retrieved December 2, 2005. Jump up ^ Avila (2005). "Tropical Depression Four discussion number 2". National Hurricane Center. Retrieved March 8, 2008. Jump up ^ National Hurricane Center. "Discussion for Hurricane Dennis, 11:00 am EDT, July 8, 2005". NOAA. Retrieved December 2, 2005. Jump up ^ Stewart (2005). "Hurricane Dennis discussion number 17". National Hurr icane Center. Retrieved March 8, 2008. Jump up ^ National Hurricane Center. "Discussion for Hurricane Dennis, 10:00 pm CDT, July 9, 2005". NOAA. Retrieved December 2, 2005. Jump up ^ , Mobile-Pensacola Forecast Office. "Public In formation Statement". NOAA. Retrieved December 2, 2005. Jump up ^ "Hurricane Dennis kills 10 in Cuba". BBC. July 11, 2005. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Mop-up begins after Dennis sweeps Gulf Coast". MSNBC. July 11, 2005. Jump up ^ Alex Morales and Jessica Brice (July 8, 2005). "Hurricane Dennis Force s Florida and Cuba Evacuations (Update1)". Bloomberg. Retrieved April 9, 2008. ^ Jump up to: a b Garry Mitchell (July 11, 2005). "Shelters on the Gulf Coast fi ll up as Dennis strengthens". USA Today. Retrieved April 1, 2008. ^ Jump up to: a b Amy Sieckmann (2005). "Dangerous Dennis". Anniston Star. Retri eved April 1, 2008. Jump up ^ ABBY GOODNOUGH (July 9, 2005). "Residents in Storm Path Face More Toug h Choices". Times. Retrieved March 11, 2008. Jump up ^ "Developments Regarding Hurricane Dennis". NBC6. 2005. Jump up ^ Alan Gomez (2005). "700,000 Panhandle residents flee this time". Palm Beach Post. Archived from the original on August 6, 2007. Retrieved March 14, 20 08. Jump up ^ Ken Kaye and Linda Kleindienst (2005). "Hurricane Dennis grazes , sets dangerous course for Gulf Coast". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Retr ieved March 11, 2008. Jump up ^ Associated Press (2005). "Florida Panhandle Military Evacuation". WTVY News. Retrieved March 19, 2008. Jump up ^ International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. "Ope rations Update-Caribberan:Hurricanes Dennis & Emily" (PDF). Retrieved December 2 6, 2005. Jump up ^ Instituto Nacional de Recursos Hidráulicos (2003). "Lluvias intensas obs ervadas y grandes inundaciones reportadas" (in Spanish). Retrieved February 10, 2007. Jump up ^ "Castro: Cuban death toll from Hurricane Dennis raised to 16". USA Tod ay. July 12, 2005. Jump up ^ "Southern US mops up after Dennis". BBC. July 11, 2005. Jump up ^ Federal Emergency Management Agency (July 7, 2006). "Monday Marks Hurr icane Dennis Anniversary". Federal Emergency Management Agency. Retrieved July 8 , 2006. Jump up ^ Michael Wilson (July 10, 2005). "Hurricane Dennis Nears, on a Familiar Path". New York Times. Retrieved March 11, 2008. Jump up ^ Roger Roy, Wes Smith and Jason Garcia (2005). "Floridas Gulf Coast find s damage from Hurricane Dennis less than anticipated". Retrieved March 11, 2008. Jump up ^ Coralie Carlson. "Hurricane Dennis swipes Florida Keys, threatening Gu lf states". SignOnSanSiego. Retrieved March 12, 2008. Jump up ^ USGS (2005). "Hydrological impacts of Hurricane Dennis on Florida Panh andle". Retrieved March 11, 2008. Jump up ^ Dr. William M. Gray. "Forecast of Atlantic Hurricane Activity for Octo ber 2005". Colorado State University. Retrieved December 10, 2005. Jump up ^ Hurricane Research Division (2008). "Chronological List of All Hurrica nes which Affected the Continental United States: 18512005". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved April 3, 2008. Jump up ^ International Herald Tribune (2005). "Hurricane Dennis pounds Alabama- Florida coast". Retrieved March 31, 2008. ^ Jump up to: a b National Climatic Data Center (2005). "Search results for Hurr icane Dennis event reports". Retrieved March 31, 2008. Jump up ^ National Climatic Data Center (2005). "Event report for Hurricane Denn is (2)". Retrieved March 30, 2008. Jump up ^ Jermaine Jackson (2005). "Oxford escapes major hurricane damage". Dail y Mississippian. Jump up ^ David Roth (2005). "Rainfall Summary for Hurricane Dennis". Hydrometeo rological Prediction Center. Retrieved April 6, 2008. ^ Jump up to: a b National Climatic Data Center (2005). "Event report for Hurric ane Dennis". Retrieved April 6, 2008. Jump up ^ [not in citation given]National Weather Service, Southern Regional Hea dquarters. "The Menace of Dennis". NOAA. Archived from the original on August 31 , 2006. Retrieved February 5, 2006. Jump up ^ "Dennis speeds through Florida Panhandle". Ledger-Enquirer. July 10, 2 005. ^ Jump up to: a b "2 deaths apparently storm-related". Miami Herald. July 11, 20 05. Jump up ^ "Storm Topples Tree, Kills Father". WXIA-TV. July 12, 2005. Jump up ^ "Big BP oil rig listing badly in U.S. Gulf". MarketWatch. July 11, 200 5. Jump up ^ "Dennis, Katrina, Rita, Stan, and Wilma "Retired" from List of Storm N ames." NOAA. March 25, 2006. External links[edit] Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hurricane Dennis. National Hurricane Center report on Dennis A final report issue d by the National Hurricane Center regarding Hurricane Dennis, including synopti c history, meteorological statistics, casualties and damage, forecasting critiqu e, and information tables. The National Hurricane Center's archive on Hurricane Dennis Radar animation of landfall in Florida (credit to Brian McNoldy, RSMAS/Univ of M iami) The Hydrometeorological Prediction Center's archive on Hurricane Dennis. The Hydrometeorological Prediction Center's Rainfall page for Hurricane Dennis. Historic Images of Florida Hurricanes (State Archives of Florida) [show] v t e Retired Atlantic hurricane names [show] v t e Hurricane Dennis [show] v t e Tropical cyclones of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season Categories: Hurricane DennisRetired Atlantic hurricanes2005 Atlantic hurricane s easonCategory 4 Atlantic hurricanesHurricanes in CubaHurricanes in Florida2005 i n CubaHurricanes in Tennessee Navigation menu Create accountLog inArticleTalkReadEditView history Main page Contents Featured content Current events Random article Donate to Wikipedia Wikimedia Shop Interaction Help About Wikipedia Community portal Recent changes Contact page Tools What links here Related changes Upload file Special pages Permanent link Page information Wikidata item Cite this page Print/export Create a book Download as PDF Printable version Languages ??????? Català Español Euskara Français Magyar Nederlands Norsk bokmål Polski Português Simple English Suomi Svenska Edit links This page was last modified on 6 November 2014 at 01:08. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; add itional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and P rivacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, I nc., a non-profit organization. Privacy policyAbout WikipediaDisclaimersContact WikipediaDevelopersMobile viewWi kimedia Foundation Powered by MediaWiki