- Hurricane Hortense
Infobox Hurricane
Name=Hurricane Hortense
Type=hurricane
Year=1996
Basin=Atl
Image location=Hurricane Hortense 12 sept 1996 1800Z.jpg
Formed=September 3 ,1996
Dissipated=September 16 ,1996
1-min winds=120
Pressure=935
Da
Inflated=0
Fatalities=39 direct
Areas=Guadeloupe ,Virgin Islands ,Puerto Rico ,Dominican Republic ,Turks and Caicos ,Nova Scotia , Newfoundland
Hurricane season=1996 Atlantic hurricane season Hurricane Hortense was the eighth tropical storm, sixth hurricane, and second Category 4 hurricane of the
1996 Atlantic hurricane season . Lasting fromSeptember 3 toSeptember 16 , Hortense brought torrential flooding as it moved through theLesser Antilles ,Puerto Rico , andDominican Republic . Hitting only one year after Hurricanes Luis and Marilyn and weeks after Hurricane Bertha, it caused 39 deaths and $158 million (1996US dollars ) in damage.Meteorological history
A strong low-pressure system exited the coast of
Senegal onAugust 30 and moved westward. A well-defined low-level circulation quickly formed, but convection remained minimal due to strong upper level shear. The shear abated enough to allow shower activity to refire, and the system became Tropical Depression Eight onSeptember 3 . As it moved westward under the influence of a high pressure system, convection around the depression remained minimal due to persistent shear. As the depression approached theLesser Antilles , upper level shear rapidly lessened, and it was able to organize into Tropical Storm Hortense on the 7th.Hortense moved slowly through the
Leeward Islands late onSeptember 7 into the 8th, and despite initial forecasts of quick strengthening to hurricane status, Hortense encountered shear from a fast moving upper-level short trough. Shear quickly abated, and Hortense was able to reach hurricane strength on the 9th while in the northeastCaribbean Sea . The large hurricane turned to the northwest, and passed over southwesternPuerto Rico near Guánica. After two hours over land, it entered theMona Passage , and paralleled the northeast coast ofDominican Republic as an 80mph (130km/h ) hurricane.[
Puerto Rico landfall] Hurricane Hortense moved northwestward over theAtlantic Ocean , passing north of theTurks and Caicos Islands , where hurricane conditions were reported. Conditions became ideal for development, and the hurricane rapidly intensified to a 140 mph (220 km/h) Category 4 hurricane onSeptember 13 . A developing trough brought Hortense quickly to the northeast, producing shear that rapidly weakened the hurricane. As a Category 1 hurricane on the 15th, Hortense crossed over the southernNova Scotia n coastline, and turned eastward. Later that day the storm became extratropical while south of Newfoundland, and dissipated onSeptember 16 over the open North Atlantic.Impact
Hortense was a large and wet hurricane, producing about 10 inches (250 mm) of rain in
Guadeloupe . No other reported damage occurred in theLesser Antilles . [http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/1996hortense.html TPC NHC HORTENSE 1996 PRELIMINARY REPORT ] ]Puerto Rico received the worst of the storm, with over 24 inches (600 mm) of rain occurring in the eastern mountainous region of the island. The extreme flooding led to numerous mudslides, overflowing many rivers and damaging 11,463 houses. Around 1,400,000 people in Puerto Rico, about 40% of its population, lost power during and after the storm, straining the cleanup effort in the following days and weeks with lack of air conditioning and spoiled food. [http://chronicle.augusta.com/headlines/091396/hortense.html @ugusta headlines: Hortense Grows Stronger, Moves North Through Atlantic, September 12, 1996 ] ] Much of eastern Puerto Rico was declared a federal disaster in the period after the storm. In all, Hortense was responsible for 18 deaths, and $155 million in damage, 80% of it from coffee and banana crop damage.Heavy damage was also experienced in
Dominican Republic , where nearly 20 inches (510 mm) of rain occurred. One school and one church were destroyed by strong winds, with significant property damage in the northeast part of the country. A nine-foot storm surge combined with the rainfall caused 3 deaths (with 21 missing) and significant crop damage.The
Bahamas , threatened by their second major hurricane in two weeks, fared well from the storm, with little damage and no casualties.In
Nova Scotia , Hortense dropped heavy rainfall and caused strong winds, causing power outages, uprooted trees, and moderate structural damage amounting to $3 million (1996 USD). [ [http://www.atl.ec.gc.ca/weather/hurricane/storm96.html CHC - Storms of 1996 ] ]Retirement
The name Hortense was retired in the spring of 1997 and will never again be used for an
Atlantic hurricane . It was replaced with Hanna in the 2002 season.See also
*
List of Atlantic hurricanes
*List of retired Atlantic hurricane names Notes
External links
* [http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/1996hortense.html NHC Hortense Report]
* [http://www.stormcarib.com/hurr96b.htm#hort Stormcarib.com Hortense Information]
* [http://www.srh.noaa.gov/sju/hortense.htm Hurricane Hortense Info]
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