Hurricane Marilyn was the fifteenth tropical depression and thirteenth named storm of the unusually busy 1995 Atlantic hurricane season, following closely on the heels of Hurricane Luis. Hurricane Marilyn was the most powerful storm to hit the Virgin Islands since Hurricane Hugo of 1989.
Marilyn formed late in the UTC day on September 13, and reached hurricane strength soon thereafter. Marilyn struck the Lesser Antilles on September 14 at Category 1 strength, and intensified to nearly Category 3 strength by the time it reached the U.S. Virgin Islands. A Hurricane Hunter reconnaissance flight reported hail, which is unusual for tropical cyclones. After heading north past Bermuda, Marilyn weakened and became extratropical on September 22. The remnant circulation wandered the Atlantic Ocean from September 23 - October 1, just south of Nova Scotia. Marilyn peaked at 115 mph (185 km/h), but was predicted to reach 125 mph (205 km/h) (maximum Category 3-status).
Marilyn is directly responsible for thirteen deaths, most due to drowning on boats or offshore. 11 000 people were left homeless on the island of St. Thomas, and estimated damages were set at $2 billion (1995 USD) in the USVI The same area would be struck by Hurricane Bertha the next year, while still repairing from Hurricanes Luis and Marilyn, then successively hit by Hortense, Erika, Georges, José, Lenny and Debby.
Read more about Hurricane Marilyn: Meteorological History, Preparations, Impact, Economic Impact
Famous quotes containing the words hurricane and/or marilyn:
“Thought and beauty, like a hurricane or waves, should not know conventional, delimited forms.”
—Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1860–1904)
“So we think of Marilyn who was every man’s love affair with America. Marilyn Monroe who was blonde and beautiful and had a sweet little rinky-dink of a voice and all the cleanliness of all the clean American backyards.”
—Norman Mailer (b. 1923)