The high winds caused long term power outages. Major wind damage was caused by sustained winds of over 40 miles per hour and gusts over 80 mph. Two inches of rain and a strong tidal surge of nearly 5.5 feet above mean sea level caused heavy damage, erosion, and significant coastal flooding. Masaw the “No Name Storm” which was referred to as the “Storm of the Century” by the media. Each created flooding situations within the City. In more recent times, three storm events have affected the City of Gulfport. Finally, the hurricane made a loop off Cedar Key and then headed northwest making landfall near Biloxi, Mississippi. Rainfall amount recorded in Gulfport totaled 5.35 inches. The Gulfport Fire Department, in a coordinated effort, assisted 112 evacuees and answered 63 citizen calls. Evacuation orders were given in Pinellas County that included parts of Gulfport. Gulfport’s Municipal Beach also experienced erosion. The high tides and heavy wave action caused moderate to severe beach erosion, flooding, and damage to seawalls along the beach areas from Sarasota northward to Clearwater Beach. Locally, Elena had 40 to 50 mph sustained winds that caused tides six and seven feet above normal. Hurricane Elena threatened Florida’s west coast on Labor Day weekend as Elena’s path came to approximately 80 miles to the northwest of the Tampa Bay area. The historical photographs that you have seen throughout this webpage were taken during Hurricane Elena, August 30 – September 4, 1985.
/atlantictrackmap2010-56a9e13e3df78cf772ab33d0-5b882329c9e77c002ccda027.jpg "hurricane track history")
As the hurricane passed, the hurricane force winds shifted and blew the water out of Tampa Bay and Boca Ciega Bay leaving much of the bottom of both Bays exposed. Gulfport residents who lived through this intense hurricane reported the exceptional high winds and the high storm surge that flooded most of Gulfport from the shores of Boca Ciega Bay to what is now Gulfport Boulevard. Therefore, property damages and losses of life were relatively low compared to today’s development patterns. In 1921, Gulfport, like most of Pinellas County, was sparsely populated.
0 kommentar(er)
