Hurricane Michael Hits Florida Panhandle

A category 4 major hurricane, known as Hurricane Michael, has hit the Florida panhandle. Michael is the strongest tropical cyclone to collide with the states, and as of now is the strongest to make landfall on the Florida Panhandle. A cyclone of his magnitude has not been seen since Andrew in 1992.

Over 375,000 Gulf Coast residence were ordered to evacuate. Multiple media outlets have said a large amount of individuals stayed in place. One of the locations hit the hardest was Mexico beach. Michael arrived to the shores of Mexico beach on Wednesday, along with a storm surge of 9 feet and winds of 155 mph. Blocks upon blocks of homes were demolished by these conditions, leaving the remaining debris on the sands of Mexico Beach. Panama City, although not as badly damaged, was left in a state of disrepair. No property was left untouched by Michael. Pine trees over 20 feet in height were ripped apart. Car windows were shattered and the siding of house were torn apart. This is only a fraction of the destruction that Michael has left in its path.

Michael began from the southwestern part of Caribbean Sea, on Oct. 2.  After multiple days, Michael reached the western part of Cuba, where it became much more severe. On its way to Florida, Michael achieved its fastest wind speed at 155 mph. Recently, on Oct. 10, Michael became a category 4 hurricane. After making landfall, the cyclone indicated a path going towards the direction of the Chesapeake Bay. Dwindling over Georgia, Michael downed a significant amount of trees and powerlines. This has left over 32,000 homes and businesses in the dark. Some flash flooding was reported in various parts of North Carolina’s major cities.

Michael turned into a extratropical cyclone off the coast of the Mid-Atlantic on Oct. 12. As of now, the total loss estimated from Hurricane Michael is approximately $8 billion and 32 lives.