“Hurricanes are intense rotating (cyclonic) storms that form over warm tropical waters” (Environmental Encyclopedia). A hurricane will form in stages, whereby there is a certain sequence that is followed. Initially, it begins in form of a strong thunderstorm, which later turns into a tropical depression. The tropical depression strengthens and becomes a tropical storm. When the wind’s speed exceeds 74 mph, the storm transforms into a hurricane. The strength of a hurricane is measured in categories. Category 5 being the strongest and category 1 the weakest. The strongest hurricane is associated with winds blowing with a speed of more than 155 mph. A hurricane can result to a mild or severe damage depending on its strength. There are several examples. “Hurricane Katrina caused more than $60 billion in damage and killed more than 1,800 people, making it the most expensive natural disaster in U.S history” (Environmental Encyclopedia). Hurricane Ike on the other hand, was responsible for the death of more than 600 people. A lot of families also became homeless due to the destruction that had occurred. Post-tropical cyclone Sandy also led to the destruction of more than 650 homes. There was electricity outage for a long period that had affected over 8 million people. More than 286 people died when the hurricane struck.

Work cited

“Hurricanes.” Environmental Encyclopedia. Gale, 2011. Web. 04 May 2016.

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