The Most Destructive Hurricanes of 2017

  By: Bianka A. Orozco      Feb. 9, 2018

 

2017 saw 3 major hurricanes that have ruined the lives of many people. These hurricanes will be named by the date they started to form and when they ended. These hurricanes will go as the most expensive natural event in US history. 

    

1. Hurricane Harvey August 17, 2017-September 1, 2017

Hurricane Harvey started forming on August 17. It began as a tropical storm on the east of the lesser Antilles. At first the hurricane had a difficult time forming but when it crossed Yucatan, the intensity of the hurricane began to grow. As it hit the Gulf of Mexico it became stronger. After hitting the Gulf of Mexico, it went inland. The storm hit Houston, causing major flooding. During the duration of the storm, it created landfall three times in six days. The storm reached its peak on

September 1, 2017, putting one third of

Houston under water. The storm drenched

people in two feet of rain. Hurricane

Harvey’s flooding put 39,000 people out

of their home. After the horrible

hurricane was over, it was announced that

the storm had killed eighty eight people

over the duration of the storm. This just

shows how a tropical storm can turn into

a category four storm in a matter of days.

 

 

   2. Hurricane Irma August 30, 2017- September 12, 2017 

Hurricane Irma started as a tropical storm that came off the coast of Africa and moved westward. Hurricane Irma slowly intensified to a category five hurricane that would destroy many islands. This storm made landfall on Barbuda, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Martin, Anguilla, and the Virgin Islands. Hurricane Irma destroyed much of the vegetation on those islands. The storm also hit the Florida Keys. Hurricane Irma was the deadliest hurricane of 2017 and the strongest as well, with a death count of one hundred and forty six people, all from the different islands that it hit. Hurricane Irma is also one of the costliest disasters to happen in 2017. Irma is expected to reach 300 billion dollars in damage. 

 

3. Hurricane Maria September 16, 2017- September 30, 2017 

Hurricane Maria came two weeks after hurricane Irma. It started as a tropical storm that came off the coast of Africa. The storm moved westward, slowly intensifying until it reached the Lesser Antilles at which point the storm turned into a category five hurricane. Hurricane Maria hit Dominica as a category five hurricane, and from there it went to make landfall on Puerto Rico as a category four hurricane. Hurricane Maria made landfall on Puerto Rico, destroying the poor island, and also causing major damage to Puerto Rico’s electrical grid. Hurricane Maria has taken sixty four lives with her. The estimated total of the damages caused by Hurricane Maria is around 30 to 90 billion dollars . Hurricane Maria has left many people, especially in Puerto Rico, with no electricity, food, or money. In Puerto Rico, it has additionally put a lot of people (or the entire population) in financial crisis.