Hurricane Floyd - Definition and Overview

Hurricane Floyd

Hurricane Floyd was a major hurricane which struck the Bahamas and the United States in 1999. The massive storm caused the largest peacetime evacuation ever in the U.S., with millions fleeing from coastal areas in Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas. The storm paralleled the coast of the four states, only about 100-110km (60-70 miles) offshore, narrowly averting disaster for hundreds of miles or kilometers of coastline.

Floyd made landfall on the North Carolina coast on September 16, and went on to cause torrential rains and high winds throughout the rest of the mid-atlantic as far north as New York City. By the time Floyd hit the shore, it was significantly weaker than it was at sea, which was caused by the collapsing of its concentric eyes. Nevertheless, Floyd caused large power outages and flood damage across the mid-Atlantic. Recently, Floyd has been compared to Hurricane Isabel.

A 2004 study by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, found that babies living in the hardest-hit part of North Carolina reported higher rates of traumatic brain injury than in other parts of the state.

See also

• List of notable tropical cyclones
• 1999 Atlantic hurricane season
• Cape Verde-type hurricane