Louisiana Hurricanes

Hurricane Andrew made landfall in Louisiana on August 26, 1992. Despite its relatively small size, the force of Andrew’s winds caused incredible destruction to communities across the Bahamas, south Florida, and Louisiana. To date, it is the most destructive hurricane to hit the state of Florida in recorded history. In total, it caused $27.3 billion in damages and 65 fatalities. Andrew was observed first as a tropical wave that moved off the western coast of Africa on August 14. It was upgraded to a tropical depression on August 16, and had strengthened to a tropical storm by the next day. On August 22, Andrew became a hurricane as it passed north of the Greater Antilles. It made landfall near Homestead, Florida on August 24 before moving west across south Florida, into the Gulf of Mexico, and northwest towards Louisiana. Andrew made landfall near Morgan City on August 26. At the time of its landfall in Louisiana, Andrew’s maximum sustained winds were 115 mph. Wind gusts of up to 173 mph were reported. Areas in south-central Louisiana received up to 11.95 inches of rainfall over a four-day period, and an F3 tornado formed near LaPlace. In the state of Louisiana, Andrew caused seven deaths and an estimated $1 billion in damages. 

Listed below are some recommended subject headings for searching for Hurricane Andrew. Full steps on how to use these subject terms can be found on this LibGuide's homepage.

Hurricane Andrew, 1992.
Hurricane Andrew, 1992 -- Personal narratives.
Hurricane Andrew, 1992 -- Political aspects.
Hurricanes.
Hurricanes -- Gulf States.
Hurricanes -- Louisiana.
Louisiana -- Hurricanes.

A few of the collections held by LSU Libraries Special Collections are listed below. Additional collections may be found utilizing the subject headings listed in the sections above. 

Books and other published materials

Manuscript collections

Oral Histories

Additional resources for Hurricane Andrew may be located at the following link.

Images in the banner from left to right are numbered below 1 to 8.

1. Hurricane Audrey  2. Hurricane Betsy  3. Hurricane Camille  4. Hurricane Andrew  
5. Hurricane Katrina  6. Hurricane Rita  7. Hurricane Gustav  8. Hurricane Ike

Images 1-4 are in the public domain because they contain materials that originally came from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, taken or made as part of an employee's official duties. 
Images 5-8 are in the public domain in the United States because they were solely created by NASA. NASA copyright policy states that "NASA material is not protected by copyright unless noted". (See NASA copyright policy page.)