Hurricane Maria

A big storm named Maria hit many islands.

It started near Africa in the ocean. The storm grew very fast. It became a very strong hurricane.

The storm hit the island of Dominica first. It also hit Puerto Rico. The winds were very powerful. They broke many homes and trees.

In Puerto Rico, the power went out. Many people had no lights for a long time. There was also a lot of flooding. It was a very hard time for the people there.

Hurricane Maria was a very powerful storm. It hit the Caribbean in September 2017.

The storm began near Africa. It moved across the warm ocean. Warm water helps storms grow. Maria grew very fast. It became a Category 5 hurricane. This is one of the strongest types of storms.

Maria first hit the island of Dominica. The storm destroyed many homes and trees.

It then hit Puerto Rico. The wind and rain caused great damage. Many people lost their power. In fact, it caused the worst blackout in U.S. history. The power stayed out for months.

Many people died during the storm. In total, 3,059 people lost their lives. Most of these deaths happened in Puerto Rico. The storm also caused a lot of money loss. It cost over $91.61 billion. This makes Maria one of the costliest storms ever. Because it was so deadly, the name Maria was retired. This means it will not be used for future storms.

Hurricane Maria was an extremely powerful tropical cyclone. It hit the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017. This storm was the deadliest of the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season. It was also the most intense cyclone in the world that year. The storm caused huge damage to many different islands. Most of this damage happened in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico.

The storm began as a tropical wave near Africa. It moved west across the warm Atlantic Ocean. On September 16, it became Tropical Depression Fifteen. Warm sea temperatures helped the storm grow very quickly. By September 18, Maria underwent explosive intensification. It jumped from a Category 1 to a Category 5 hurricane in just 24 hours. This rate of strengthening is very rare in history.

Maria first made landfall on the island of Dominica on September 19. It was the first Category 5 hurricane to hit that nation. The storm destroyed many homes and wiped out much of the island's plants. After crossing Dominica, Maria moved toward Puerto Rico. It reached its peak intensity with winds of 175 mph. An eyewall replacement cycle later weakened it slightly. It struck Puerto Rico near Yabucoa on September 20.

The storm caused a massive humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico. It caused the worst electrical blackout in United States history. Many people lived without power for several months. The total death toll from the storm was 3,059 people. Most of these deaths, 2,975, occurred in Puerto Rico. Other deaths happened in Dominica, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Haiti. The storm also caused over $91.61 billion in losses.

Maria's impact was felt across many different places. It caused flooding and uprooted trees in Guadeloupe and Martinique. The storm even moved near the East Coast of the United States. It eventually became an extratropical cyclone on September 30. Because the storm was so deadly, the name Maria was retired. This means experts will not use the name for future storms. This helps people remember how serious the event was.

Hurricane Maria was an extremely powerful and catastrophic tropical cyclone. It struck the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017. This storm was the most intense tropical cyclone in the world that year. It also became the deadliest storm of the very active 2017 Atlantic hurricane season. Maria caused massive destruction across several island nations and territories. The storm is remembered as a major humanitarian crisis due to its scale.

The storm began as a tropical wave near the coast of Africa. It moved westward across the Atlantic Ocean under a mid-level ridge. By September 16, it developed into Tropical Depression Fifteen. The system moved over warm sea surface temperatures of 28°C. It also encountered low wind shear and abundant moisture aloft. These specific conditions allowed the disturbance to consolidate. It became Tropical Storm Maria only six hours after the depression was named.

Maria underwent a process called explosive intensification. This means the storm grew much stronger in a very short time. On September 18, the winds nearly doubled in strength. It jumped from a Category 1 hurricane to a Category 5 hurricane in just 24 hours. This rate of intensification is very rare in the Atlantic. Maria made landfall on the island of Dominica on September 19. It was the first Category 5 hurricane recorded to strike that nation.

After crossing Dominica, the storm moved toward Puerto Rico. It reached its peak intensity with maximum sustained winds of 175 mph. At this time, the central pressure was 908 mbar. An eyewall replacement cycle then caused the storm to weaken slightly. This cycle involves the inner eyewall being replaced by a larger outer one. Maria struck Puerto Rico near Yabucoa on September 20 as a high-end Category 4 hurricane. It later restrengthened into a major hurricane after moving back over the Atlantic.

The impact on Puerto Rico was catastrophic and widespread. The storm caused the worst electrical blackout in United States history. This power outage lasted for several months. Many people faced a lack of resources and flooding. The island's infrastructure was already struggling before the storm arrived. The electric grid was aging, with a median plant age of 44 years. Additionally, the water system was in substandard condition prior to the hurricanes.

The total death toll from Hurricane Maria was 3,059 people. Most of these deaths, 2,975, occurred in Puerto Rico. In Dominica, the storm caused 65 deaths. Other fatalities occurred in the Dominican Republic, Guadeloupe, the United States, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Haiti. The monetary losses were estimated at over $91.61 billion in 2017 USD. This makes it the fourth-costliest tropical cyclone on record. The name Maria was retired from the list of storm names because of this destruction.

Maria's effects reached far beyond the Caribbean islands. It passed north of The Bahamas and paralleled the U.S. East Coast. It eventually moved toward the North Atlantic Ocean. On September 28, a trough helped swing the storm eastward. It became an extratropical cyclone on September 30. This means it lost its tropical characteristics as it moved into cooler waters. The storm finally dissipated by October 2. It remains one of the most significant meteorological events of the 21st century.