Hurricane Fifi

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This article is about the 1974 hurricane; for other storms with this name see Tropical Storm Fifi

Hurricane Fifi (or Hurricane Fifi-Orlene) was a catastrophic storm during the 1974 Atlantic hurricane season that made landfall in Belize. Fifi was one of the costliest hurricanes in history, causing $3.7 billion (2005 USD) in damages. It was also one of the deadliest Atlantic hurricanes, killing as many as 10,000 people. Fifi was one of the few storms that crossed from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean.

Storm history

Hurricane Fifi

A tropical wave that moved off the coast of Africa on September 8 became a tropical depression in the eastern Caribbean Sea on September 14. It moved westward, slowly strengthening to a tropical storm on the 16th. Conditions became favorable for further development, and Fifi became a hurricane on the 17th.

Fifi reached a peak of 110 mph (175 km/h) winds, just before skimming the northern coast of Honduras on the September 18 and 19. The hurricane made landfall as a Category 2 storm in Belize on the 19th, and continued through Guatemala and Mexico as a tropical system. After weakening to a depression, Fifi emerged into the Pacific Ocean, becoming the first crossover storm since Hurricane Irene-Olivia in 1971.

Hurricane Orlene

The remnants of Fifi encountered a depression and interacted with it. This triggered the development of another system. After it was named Orlene, it paralleled the coast of Mexico before reaching hurricane intensity on September 23. It made landfall near its secondary peak strength on September 23 southeast of Culiacan and dissipated shortly after that.Sharon Towry [Eastern North Pacific Tropical Cyclones, 1974: Part 2]

Impact

Fifi, only a Category 2 hurricane at its strongest, skirted the north coast of Honduras, causing massive flooding from the inflow of southerly winds. The rains collected in rivers, which caused enormous amounts of physical and economic damage to poor villages, small towns, and commercial banana plantations when it skimmed Honduras. Most of the countries fishing fleet was destroyed. Although estimates of the number killed range from 3000 to 10,000, a figure of 8,000 dead is generally accepted. Most deaths may have been caused by freshwater flooding from the rainfall that accompanied the hurricane.

Hurricane Fifi is usually considered the fourth deadliest hurricane in history, though uncertainty about the number of deaths caused by Fifi and the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 could place it as the third deadliest ever.

Fifi caused a total of $900 million (1974 USD, $3.7 billion 2005 USD) in damage.http://www.worldbook.com/wc/popup?path=features/hurricanes&page=html/fifi.htm&direct=yesfact

The Orlene part of Hurricane Fifi-Orlene caused no reported casualties.Robert A. Baum [Eastern North Pacific Tropical Cyclones, 1974: Part 1] Nothing was reported from ships either, although it is likely to have happened. Rainfall of over 11 inches was reported in Acapulco, however.[link]

Retirement

The name "Fifi" was retired following this storm, and will never be used for an Atlantic hurricane again.

See also

1. redirect

• List of notable Atlantic hurricanes
• List of notable Pacific hurricanes

References

External links

• [Fifi track]
• [Orlene path]

Tropical cyclones of the 1974 Atlantic hurricane season |stormname=One |strength=Subtropical Storm |linkname=1974_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Subtropical_Storm_One |storminitial=1 }} |stormname=Two |strength=Subtropical Storm |linkname=1974_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Subtropical_Storm_Two |storminitial=2 }} |stormname=Three |strength=Subtropical Storm |linkname=1974_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Subtropical_Storm_Three |storminitial=3 }} |stormname=Alma |strength=Tropical Storm |linkname=1974_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Tropical_Storm_Alma |storminitial=A }} |stormname=Becky |strength=Category 3 |linkname=1974_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Hurricane_Becky |storminitial=B }} |stormname=Carmen |strength=Category 4 |linkname=Hurricane_Carmen |storminitial=C }} |stormname=Dolly |strength=Tropical Storm |linkname=1974_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Tropical_Storm_Dolly |storminitial=D }} |stormname=Elaine |strength=Tropical Storm |linkname=1974_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Tropical_Storm_Elaine |storminitial=E }} |stormname=Fifi |strength=Category 2 |linkname=Hurricane_Fifi |storminitial=F }} |stormname=Gertrude |strength=Category 1 |linkname=1974_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Hurricane_Gertrude |storminitial=G }} |stormname=Four |strength=Subtropical Storm |linkname=1974_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Subtropical_Storm_Four |storminitial=4 }}

 

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