Tropical Storm Irene started as a tropical depression in the Atlantic before passing through the Caribbean as a category 3 hurricane, hitting the east coast of the United States as a category 1 hurricane[1] and losing intensity as it headed north toward New York City. It had maximum sustained winds of 110 mph (as of Friday morning, August 26, 2011). It initially came ashore on the mainland of the United States at Cape Lookout, North Carolina.[1]
Irene killed 46 people in thirteen states and Puerto Rico[2] and 7 people in the Caribbean - 2 in Haiti, 4 in the Dominican Republic and 1 other.[3]
Approximately 4 million people in the United States lost power. Many were surprised by how long power outages lasted for what had become merely a tropical storm. How long would power be out if a full hurricane reached a highly populated shoreline?
Development
Tropical storm Irene developed east of the Leeward Islands, with NOAA issuing its first advisory at 7 PM on August 20, 2011. The storm developed into a Category 1 hurricane by August 22 while over Puerto Rico, becoming the first hurricane of the 2011 Atlantic season.[4] The storm swept over the Dominican Republic and the Turks and Caicos Islands before hitting the Bahamas as a Category 3 hurricane. It destroyed over 100 homes there, and brought flooding and power outages to the islands.[5] At least 7000 homes were damaged in the Dominican Republic.[3]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Damage and Flooding Scar Atlantic Seaboard
- ↑ US floodwaters recede after Irene Hill, Michael and Samantha Henry, September 1, 2011, news.ninemsn.com.au, retrieved September 1, 2011
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Relief agencies struggle as hurricane death toll rises to 7 in Caribbean Wallengren, Maja, August 27, 2011, English.news.cn, retrieved August 28, 2011.
- ↑ Hurricane IRENE, Advisory number 7 National Hurricane Center, retrieved August 26, 2011
- ↑ Hurricane Irene hammers Bahamas islands August 26, 2011, bbcnews.com, retrieved August 26, 2011