The 1900 Storm

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On September 8, 1900, the United States experienced the most devastating natural disaster in history, the 1900 storm. Originating as a tropical storm off the coast of Cuba, the 1900 storm didn’t reach hurricane status until passing Key West, Florida. While in the eastern part of the Gulf of Mexico, the storm took an unexpected turn heading towards the Texas coast. Because of the lack of technology during this era, the people were warned that a storm of moderate intensity was headed toward them. Unaware that the storm was forcefully gaining speed, the Galvestonians were in no way prepared for the extraordinary weather which was quietly approaching. Suddenly, the ruthless hurricane struck the shores of Galveston, Texas, one of the wealthiest cities in the United States, famous for its shipping port. The brutal winds of the storm shocked the city, as they desperately sought shelter.
According to the Saffir–Simpson hurricane scale (SSHS), hurricanes are categorized by their sustained winds. To be considered a hurricane, a storm has to have sustained winds of 74 mph. That is for a Category 1 storm. The highest ranking on the scale is a Category 5 with sustaining winds of 156 miles per hour. The storm of 1900, with its deadly winds averaging around 140 miles per hour, was a Category 4 hurricane but some people believe the winds may have reached 200 mph. The storm devastated the island. The majority of Galveston Island was rapidly deluged, with the storm surge height reaching 15.7 feet. Barely nine feet showed above water at the peak of the highest ground in Galveston.
When the hurricane finally passed and the water had receded enough for the Galvestonians to leave their place of refuge, the citizens emerged to find that th...

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...save lives. Another advance in hurricane safety is weather predicting technology. At the time of the storm, there were no warning sirens and although the people were aware that bad weather was coming, they were used to dealing with storms and were unaware of the deadly disaster that was approaching.
To this day, the 1900 storm remains the most deadly natural disaster in the history of the United States. Once a major shipping port, Galveston is now forever changed. The storm took with it millions of dollars’ worth of structures, priceless personal possessions, and thousands of innocent lives. Galveston would never regain its wealth to the full extent after the beautiful structures and bustling ports became worthless wreckage scattered across the island and demolished by the ocean. The horrors and heartbreaks that the 1900 storm caused are almost unmeasurable.

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