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All storm pages · 1992 Atlantic season

Hurricane Andrew 1992

Category 5 hurricane · Atlantic · August 16 to August 28, 1992

Andrew's 165 mph landfall in Florida on August 24, 1992 ranks the second-strongest of the 229 storms with a landfall record there. Its 160 mph landfall in the Bahamas on August 23, 1992 ranks the second-strongest of the 29 storms with a landfall record there. It reached Category 5 with 175 mph winds, one of 44 Atlantic storms to do so since 1851. The name Andrew is on the National Hurricane Center's list of retired Atlantic hurricane names.

Track of Andrew (1992) from the best-track record, coloured by strength10°N20°N30°N90°W80°W70°W60°W50°W40°WChattanoogaJacksonBahamas, 160 mphFlorida, 165 mphLouisiana, 115 mphPeak 175 mphFirst recordDepressionTropical stormCategory 1Category 2Category 3Category 4Category 500 and 12 UTCLandfall

Strength over time

Maximum sustained wind of Andrew (1992) over time, in mphTSCat 1Cat 2Cat 3Cat 4Cat 504080120160200Aug 17Aug 19Aug 21Aug 23Aug 25Aug 27mph
  1. First record (tropical depression) far out at sea, at 10.8°N, 35.5°W
  2. Tropical storm 1,005 miles east-northeast of Paramaribo, Suriname
  3. Hurricane 465 miles north-northeast of Puerto Plata, the Dominican Republic
  4. Major hurricane 390 miles east of Nassau, the Bahamas
  5. Peak 100 miles east-northeast of Nassau, the Bahamas; lowest pressure 922 mb
  6. Landfall Bahamas
  7. Landfall Bahamas: Category 4, 150 mph, 931 mb
  8. Landfall Florida
  9. Landfall Florida: Category 5, 165 mph, 922 mb
  10. Landfall Louisiana: Category 3, 115 mph, 956 mb
  11. Last record (tropical depression) 40 miles south of Knoxville, Tennessee

Against every Atlantic storm since 1851

Peak sustained wind175 mph · tied 11th of 1,98830 mph190 mph
Lowest central pressure922 mb · tied 31st of 1,277882 mb1016 mb
Accumulated cyclone energy28.4 · 103rd of 1,7520.173.6
Days as a tropical or subtropical cyclone11.5 days · tied 163rd of 1,9880.0 days31.8 days

More from the record

It has landfall records in 3 different places: the Bahamas, Florida and Louisiana.

No other storm of the 1992 Atlantic season matched its 175 mph peak; the season had 10 storms.

It generated 38% of the season's accumulated cyclone energy, more than any other 1992 storm.

Its winds climbed 75 mph in the 24 hours to August 23.

In the 1992 season

04080120160200Andrew

Storm 4 of 10 in 1992, hurricane 1 of 4; it formed after Storm 3 of 1992 and before Bonnie. See the season.

Places the center passed

The center came within 50 miles of at least 8 towns or cities of 10,000 people or more while the system was tropical. Distances are to the interpolated track line, not the storm's edge.

PlaceClosestWind thenDate
Jackson, Mississippi2 mi35 mphAugust 27
Homestead, Florida4 mi160 mphAugust 24
Chattanooga, Tennessee8 mi25 mphAugust 28
New Iberia, Louisiana9 mi90 mphAugust 26
Coral Gables, Florida15 mi165 mphAugust 24
Natchez, Mississippi16 mi40 mphAugust 26
Dalton, Georgia17 mi25 mphAugust 28
Huntsville, Alabama18 mi25 mphAugust 28

Every storm within 50 miles of Chattanooga, Tennessee

Similar landfalls in Florida

Storms whose strongest landfall record in Florida came closest to Andrew's 165 mph:

All 229 storms with a landfall record in Florida

Also peaked at 175 mph

Of 9 storms from other Atlantic seasons, the nearest in time: