Biscayne National Park - Hurricane Andrew

Hurricane Andrew

Like many locations in southern Florida, Biscayne National Park is affected by hurricanes every few years. Most storms require temporary closings and occasional repairs to park facilities. A direct hit by a powerful hurricane can produce severe consequences, primarily by its impact on human interventions in the environment rather than on the natural environment of the park, which is well-adapted to these events. Significant hurricanes to strike Biscayne include storms in 1835 and 1904, the 1906 Florida Keys hurricane, the 1926 Miami hurricane, the 1929 Bahamas hurricane, the 1935 Labor Day hurricane, the 1935 Yankee hurricane, the 1941 Florida hurricane, the 1945 Southeast Florida hurricane, the 1948 Miami hurricane, Hurricane King in 1950, Hurricane Cleo in 1964, and Hurricane Andrew in 1992.

On August 24, 1992 Hurricane Andrew came ashore just south of Miami, passing directly across Biscayne National Park with maximum sustained winds of 141 miles per hour (227 km/h), with gusts to 169 miles per hour (272 km/h). The storm surge was up to 17 feet (5.2 m) above mean sea level. It was a compact Category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. Biscayne Bay was affected by bottom scouring and turbidity, with damage to its fringes of mangrove forest. Leakage from damaged boats and marinas polluted the bay with fuel, with discharges continuing for nearly a month after the hurricane's passage. A commemorative plaque was placed at the Dante Fascell Visitor Center in 2002 to commemorate the human and environmental cost of Andrew, and to celebrate the area's recovery from the storm's effects. The inscription reads in part:

On Monday, August 24,1992, at 4:30 a.m., the eye wall of Hurricane Andrew passed over this point before striking Homestead and southern Miami-Dade County.

The Fowey Rocks light station transmitted weather data with winds peaking at a two-minute wind speed of 127 knots and a gust to 147 kt before the station ceased transmitting, presumably due to damage from stronger gusts. The strongest part of the eyewall had not reached Fowey Rocks when it stopped transmitting.