How Many Miles Inland Do Hurricanes Affect? (Miami, Tampa: how much, hotels)

[Xavier500]

As a potential Florida resident, I'm weighting my pros and cons about moving there. A few cons I have in mind are a higher cost of living (compared to Minnesota), a lot of humidity, not knowing anyone, and finally...hurricanes. Minnesota has a few tornados here and there (which still scare me) but overall it's not too bad. I'm kind of worried about the hurricanes though. If I end up attending Broward College in Coconut Creek, I'm a little nervous about putting myself in the path for a hurricane - do they come that far inland? Travel across the whole state? Granted, I won't be living on the beach, but I see it's only about 9 miles away from the beach. How much do I need to be concerned? I really know nothing about hurricanes..

[Lilybeans]

Hurricanes are huge storms.. they can be a hundred miles across, although the intense part of the storm is much smaller. Storms can move across the state, but damge from storm surge only happens near the coast.

In 2004 the Orlando area had Charlie, Francis and Jeanne come across, I believe. No place is really safe from a hurricane.

Don't let fear of hurricane deter you from living here, if that's what you want. We aren't a third world country. There is plenty of warning (except for Jeanne or Charlie). Stay alert and listen to the warnings. Be prepared and you'll be just fine.

[StilltheSame]

How many miles inland? As many as they want when it comes to Florida. Lilybeans is absolutely right - Hurricanes only break up well inland after it makes landfall - all of Florida is vunerable. That being said - its more myth than reality. I was in SFL during David (79) Andrew and many others - most are not deadly and with proper preparation are relatively painless (except on the pocketbook and waistline).

[CrowGirl]

Originally Posted by Lilybeans

Hurricanes are huge storms.. they can be a hundred miles across, although the intense part of the storm is much smaller. Storms can move across the state, but damge from storm surge only happens near the coast.

In 2004 the Orlando area had Charlie, Francis and Jeanne come across, I believe. No place is really safe from a hurricane.

Don't let fear of hurricane deter you from living here, if that's what you want. We aren't a third world country. There is plenty of warning (except for Jeanne or Charlie). Stay alert and listen to the warnings. Be prepared and you'll be just fine.

I second this. There have been storms that literally cover the entirety of Florida, But the intensity varies, and the farther inland you are the less likely you are to have severe damage. But you can't move here and think you can avoid them. The good news is that you know when they are coming and can prepare. We're learning more about hurricanes with each passing season and it's easier to protect yourself than in the past. I've been through three direct hits and several more on the outskirts. The first was the worst because it was such an unknown thing. You shouldn't let it make your decision, IMHO, but I definitely endorse keeping it in the back of your mind when you are choosing a place to live (off the coast, concrete construction, etc.).

[Xavier500]

What exactly do you guys mean when you say be prepared? When it comes to tornados we can move to basemets, but what do you do for a hurricane? I can't imagine that driving in immense amounts of traffic with nowhere to go would be too good of a plan...and damages to personal belongings/home/car concern me. So, what are your options - go to a hurricane shelter? What do you do to prepare for/stay safe in a hurricane?

[CrowGirl]

Evacuation depends on the severity and your location. I remember when I moved down here everyone said, oh you can just leave. But as you surmise....not that simple. Lots of traffic, clogged roads, and the very real possibility of running out of gas with all the stations out of gas. I consider preparation twofold. There is long term preparation, such as purchasing hurricane shutters, a brace for your garage door, metal roof, etc. Maximise your home's ability to withstand a storm. The second piece is to have a plan. If you are in an evacuation zone, arrange with a friend who lives in a solid house outside the evac zone to stay with him or her...evacuation does not have to be 1000 miles away. Get canned foods and water. Get a hand-crank radio, bleach, tarps, battery-operated fan, etc. Trim your trees ad figure out where they would fall in a worst case scenario and where your best "safe room" is. There's lots of information out there. Bookmark NOAA. Once you've been down here for a while it becomes ingrained in you. I loved in California for a while and the earthquake thing was somewhat comparable. You knew you had to screw in your bookcases, not keep heavy objects on them, not use the gas after a tremblor, etc. But again the big differentiator is prior warning. Keep in mind that most hurricane deaths are "secondary".....people fall off their roofs while putting up tarps, step in a puddle with a fallen electrical line, etc. - not due to the storm itself (excepting really severe storms) so the more you know the better off you'll be.

[fauve]

Just for the record - Ive evacuated for every hurricane since Andrew, and have never hit traffic. Most people just can't afford to leave. Others have generators, etc., and just prefer to stay.

[flyers29]

Originally Posted by fauve

Just for the record - Ive evacuated for every hurricane since Andrew, and have never hit traffic. Most people just can't afford to leave. Others have generators, etc., and just prefer to stay.

Hmm, took us 5 hours to get from Miami to West Palm before Andrew, then again Andrew was the worst by far. As others have said, it's a matter of precautions that in the end aren't always needed. I've put up shutters for multiple storms that never ended up hitting, and other than Andrew went through a handful of category 1s. The latter isn't even worth leaving your house unless you live right on the water.

[fauve]

Originally Posted by flyers29

Hmm, took us 5 hours to get from Miami to West Palm before Andrew, then again Andrew was the worst by far. As others have said, it's a matter of precautions that in the end aren't always needed. I've put up shutters for multiple storms that never ended up hitting, and other than Andrew went through a handful of category 1s. The latter isn't even worth leaving your house unless you live right on the water.

We went to Tampa for Andrew, and we left maybe 36 hours before. Maybe the combination of Alligator Alley and the early departure helped. For other hurricanes we've gone to Orlando (3 or 4 times - the Loews Hotels at Universal take pets) & Marathon (the Keys were the only place outside of the 'cone of uncertainty' that time).

I hate staying even for Cat 1s because of the loss of A/C.

[Nolefan34]

fuave>

It sounds like you evacuate days before each storm, which is why you hit minimal traffic. Most people do not have that luxury as they have jobs, family, and have to board up their homes. Also, you don't really know where a hurricane will hit until about 24 hours beforehand. By that time, the roads are gridlocked with traffic. Also, most businesses shut down and everyone makes a run on supplies at grocery stores, hardware stores, gas stations, and banks to get cash.

To answer the original poster's question: "How far inland do hurricanes affect"- The answer is VERY FAR INLAND. For example, if a hurricane comes from the Atlantic Ocean and hits Fort Lauderdale, it will continue all the way across the state and come out into the Gulf of Mexico. The worst damage occurs closest to the coast, with strong winds and storm surge. 9 miles inland you won't need to worry about storm surge, but you will still get the strong winds. The further inland, the less wind damage but you still get lots of flooding.

Storms weaken when they move across land, and they strengthen when they move across warm shallow water. That is why they are weak when they originate off the coast of Africa and are strongest when they reach the Gulf Stream just off of the U.S. coast. The Gulf Stream is the warm shallow water current just a few miles off of the FL coast. The issue with FL is that when a storm moves across the Everglades, the land is half water, so the storms do not weaken much. Then they go back out into the Gulf of Mexico and strengthen again before hitting New Orleans or Texas.