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Hurricane Jerry
Category 1 hurricane (SSHWS/NWS)
Hurricane Jerry making landfall in Texas
FormedOctober 12, 1989
DissipatedOctober 16, 1989
Highest winds1-minute sustained: 75 mph (120 km/h)
Lowest pressure983 mbar (hPa); 29.03 inHg
Fatalities3 direct
Damage$70 million (1989 USD)
Areas affectedTexas
Part of the 1989 Atlantic hurricane season

Hurricane Jerry was the tenth named storm and the sixth and final hurricane of the 1989 Atlantic hurricane season. Jerry was also the fourth U.S. landfalling storm and the third storm to strike Texas during the 1989 season; the 2 former storms were Allison in June and Chantal in August, marking the most number of Texas landfalls in one season since 1886 and was also the only hurricane to hit Texas during the month of October in recorded history.

Meteorological history

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Map plotting the storm's track and intensity, according to the Saffir–Simpson scale
Map key
  Tropical depression (≤38 mph, ≤62 km/h)
  Tropical storm (39–73 mph, 63–118 km/h)
  Category 1 (74–95 mph, 119–153 km/h)
  Category 2 (96–110 mph, 154–177 km/h)
  Category 3 (111–129 mph, 178–208 km/h)
  Category 4 (130–156 mph, 209–251 km/h)
  Category 5 (≥157 mph, ≥252 km/h)
  Unknown
Storm type
triangle Extratropical cyclone, remnant low, tropical disturbance, or monsoon depression

A tropical wave moved off the coast of Africa and moved westward through the Caribbean Sea without any development. The system's forward speed decreased when it reached the Yucatán Peninsula and stalled and meandered for several days until a Hurricane Hunter found a closed area of circulation and winds in excess of 25 mph (40 km/h). The tropical wave was upgraded to a tropical depression at 1600 UTC. Later on, during post-storm analysis, officials found that the storm had become a depression hours earlier near the Mexican port of Veracruz[1].

Now Tropical Depression Fourteen, the storm moved northward where it became a tropical storm on October 13 and was named Jerry. Jerry continued to move northward before turning northeastward as the storm gained strength. On October 14, Jerry encountered an upper level system which slowed the storm down and nearly sheared it apart, but the still-strengthening storm continued northward and entered an area with less wind shear. Within 12 hours, Jerry had attained Category 1 hurricane status. [1]

Hurricane Jerry made landfall in Galveston, Texas on October 16 as a category one hurricane. The storm then moved inland, its forward speed always increasing. By the end of October 16, Jerry was absorbed by a frontal system. [1]

Unpredictability

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The forecast models of Jerry were never close to the hurricane's actual landfall

Jerry was an unpredictable storm as the strengthening before landfall and the continuation to the northwest was not anticipated. Equipment failure meant that data was not readily available, resulting in the release of a hurricane warning only eight hours prior to landfall. The NHC forecast model was also disabled, throwing the accuracy of Jerry's track off.[1]

Impact

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Jerry killed three people and caused $70 million dollars (1989 USD, $110 million 2005 USD) in damage. Jerry's landfall (along with Chantal and Allison earlier) was the most tropical cyclone landfalls for Texas since the 1886 season.

Rainfall totals from Hurricane Jerry

Jerry produced heavy rainfall when it made landfall, with 6.4 inches (160 mm) of rain being reported in Silsbee, Texas[2] Three people were killed when their car crashed off the Galveston Seawall during the storm. It was unknown if the car simply drove off the seawall because of heavy rains or it was blown off by high winds. Jerry also caused light beach erosion along the Texas coast. [1]

3-5 inches (8-13 cm) of rain was reported in Tennessee and Kentucky.[2]

Hurricane Jerry provided the final destruction of Texas State Highway 87 between High Island and Sabine Pass. This section of the highway had become a victim to shoreline erosion and high tides. The twenty mile (32 km) section was destroyed by the hurricane. As of 2008, there are no plans to rebuild it.

Aftermath

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In Polk County, Texas, Jerry knocked out power for five to ten days to half of the residents. Trees were downed everywhere, blocking roads and destroying area homes. Jerry became only the fourth storm to hit this area directly since 1983, the others being Alicia of 1983, Bonnie of 1986 and Chantal earlier in the season.[3]

Because the damage was not extreme, the name Jerry was not retired. The name was reused for the 1995 Atlantic hurricane season, for the 2001 season, and the name was also used during 2007, and will next be in use for 2013.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Jerry 1989 report Cite error: The named reference "noaa" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Jerry rainfall Cite error: The named reference "noaa rain" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  3. ^ Hurricanes