Louisiana’s Hurricanes
State has centuries-old history of damaging storms
BY DON KINGERY AMERICAN PRESS
Hurricane Audrey remains infamous for the lives it took in Cameron Parish in 1957.
In 2005, Hurricane Rita joined the short list of storms that changed lives in
Southwest Louisiana.
Americans in places that never have hurricanes pay taxes for places that do.
People who live where hurricanes hit pay both taxes and extra insurance. They pay
premiums to live where they live.
On the hurricaneprone Gulf Coast, hurricanes change lifestyles, shape the work
people do, rearrange priorities and create workforces to deal with storms.
Future effects may be even more profound.
People have changed coastal regions. Nature tries to erase those changes.
Today’s coastal civilization may be tomorrow’s wasteland. People who work in deep
waters may someday go there to work, but live elsewhere.
A storm primer
Hurricanes that impact the Gulf Coast usually approach the region through the
northwestern Caribbean Sea. Some of the most intense hurricanes to strike the Gulf
Coast originate thousands of miles away in the tropical Atlantic. Other storms that
strike Gulf states develop in the Gulf of Mexico.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted the 2005 Atlantic
hurricane season would produce 12 to 15 tropical storms, with seven to nine
becoming hurricanes, of which three to five could become major hurricanes.
What happened in 2005 were 28 named storms (breaking the record of 21 set in
1933, with 15 becoming hurricanes (breaking the record of 12 set in 1969), seven
becoming Category 3 hurricanes and four — Emily, Katrina, Rita and Wilma —
becoming Category 5 hurricanes.
The NOAA prediction for the 2006 Atlantic hurricane season, which begins
Thursday and ends Nov. 30, is for 13-16 named storms (the multi-year average is
10), with eight to ten becoming hurricanes (average six), and four to six (average
two) becoming Category 3 or worse.
The beginning
The National Weather Service’s Lake Charles office has collected and assembled
nearly 500 years’ worth of Louisiana’s hurricane history.
Before the Louisiana coast was populated, winds and waves scoured the marshes
that grew on soil carried down and spread by the Sabine, Calcasieu and Mermentau
rivers, just as the Mississippi River built larger deltas beyond its mouth.
The handed-down history of Gulf of Mexico storms began after Spanish explorer
Panifo de Narvaez ran into hostile Indians in Florida and fled eastward, hugging the
coastline, with 250 of his men in five barges. As they passed the mouth of what is
now called the Mississippi River, on Oct. 23, 1527, a sudden hurricane flipped the
barges. An undetermined number of men drowned.
It would be 155 years before La Salle came down that same river and discovered
the mouth where the ill-fated de Narvaez had met disaster.
Changes wrought
The first written history of a Louisiana hurricane came a century later.
On Sept. 22, 1722, a storm that had come up through the lesser Antilles hit land
just west of the mouth of the Mississippi River. A day later, it swept through central
Louisiana. When it left the state on Sept. 24, Louisiana had endured 15 hours of
hurricane-force winds, eightfoot storm surges in the mouth of the Mississippi and
three days of flooding.
In an ominous hint at what would happen 283 years later, a three-foot-high levee
built to protect New Orleans from river and tidal overflow was breached and water
poured into the city.
Lawmakers decided the storm damage proved New Orleans was unsuitable to be
the Louisiana capital. Baton Rouge, 90 miles upriver, was eventually chosen.
On Sept. 4, 1766, a huge hurricane that struck Galveston, Texas, gave a name to
a southwest Louisiana stream. Winds far east of the eye swamped the Louisianabased ship Constantine 45 miles east of Calcasieu Pass. A nearby bayou was named
Bayou del Constante to honor the lost ship. Eventually, it became Constance Bayou.
Storm during war
A monster hurricane may have changed the course of a war. Spain had declared
war on Great Britain, and almost the entire Spanish fleet had gathered at New
Orleans to launch an attack against the British in Baton Rouge. On Aug. 18, 1779, a
hurricane struck New Orleans, scattered the fleet across the Gulf of Mexico and
destroyed or disabled all but one ship. The attack never came.
Another war was affected by Louisiana’s first major storm of the 19th century. On
Aug. 19, 1812, a huge hurricane hit New Orleans, leaving most of the city under
water and killing nearly 100 people. This was during the War of 1812, and public
panic began with rumors that the British had taken advantage of the bad weather to
take over the city. Actually, the British fleet had been approaching the city to mount
an attack, but the hurricane scattered ships across the Gulf and left them crippled
and helpless.
The killing capacity of a great hurricane was documented on Aug. 16, 1831, when
a storm called the Great Barbados Hurricane reached Last Island west of Baton
Rouge. On its path through Louisiana, the storm killed 1,500 people and pushed a
storm surge that wiped out sugarcane crops all the way from Baton Rouge to below
New Orleans.
SW La. targeted
After the Great Barbados Hurricane, southwest Louisiana spent the next 15 years as
a primary target for storms coming up from the Gulf of Mexico:
Aug. 28, 1831 — A tropical storm caused major damage near the mouth of the
Sabine River and destroyed crops as far inland as Natchitoches.
Oct. 6, 1837 — A hurricane called Racer’s Storm struck just east of Cameron, caused
extensive damage, then moved east. It destroyed the wooden Bayou St. John
lighthouse near New Orleans, the first lighthouse built by the U.S. government
outside the original 13 colonies.
Sept. 14, 1839 — A storm struck Charley’s Lake, which later became Charleston and
finally Lake Charles, causing minor damage.
June 19, 1840 — A tropical storm hit Charley’s Lake and stalled for several days,
blowing down corn and fences. The cyclone passed west of Charley’s Lake.
June 11, 1844 — A storm hit Charley’s Lake, which had changed its name to
Charleston, knocking down crops and washing out a bridge.
April 3, 1846 — A hurricane that struck at the mouth of the Mississippi River and
threw off cyclones as far west as Cameron and Calcasieu parishes.
Killer hurricanes
Sept. 13, 1865 — A hurricane killed 25 people in Leesburg, which later became
Cameron. Niblett’s Bluff was ravaged. At Johnson Bayou, one person was killed and
homes were flattened. The area around Calcasieu Lake — also called Big Lake — was
flooded by the storm surge. Grand Chenier went under water, and several people
died there. Furniture and debris from wrecked homes were later found floating
several miles up the Calcasieu River.
Aug. 22, 1879 — A hurricane made landfall on the Cameron coast and pushed a
huge tidal wave across Calcasieu Pass, driving 12 vessels into shallow water and
stranding them on land after the storm passed. Other schooners were driven far
inland. Two seamen were blown overboard from a New York brig. Houses were
destroyed and hundreds of cattle drowned. Grand Chenier suffered heavy damage.
In Lake Charles, the storm knocked down several old buildings, blew the spire off a
Catholic church, uprooted trees, destroyed brick chimneys and flattened rice crops
and orchards.
June 13, 1886 — A tropical storm went inland near Calcasieu Pass. A barge was
blown ashore and a schooner was blown up on the bank of Big Lake. In Edgerly,
sheds and warehouses were blown down. At Johnson Bayou, cattle drowned, a large
watermelon crop was ruined and outhouses sailed away on the wind.
Cattle anchor hotel
Oct. 11, 1886 — A hurricane went inland at Sabine, Texas. Eastward, water was
reported nine feet deep at the Calcasieu Pass lighthouse. At Johnson Bayou, it was
reported that the only thing that kept Peveto Hotel from blowing away was the
combined weight of cattle that had taken refuge on the first floor. Houses were
blown off foundations. About 196 lives were lost, including 110 in Johnson Bayou.
Cattlemen said 7,000 cattle drowned during the storm.
Sept. 7, 1900 — A monster hurricane wiped out Galveston, Texas. Cameron Parish
received hurricaneforce winds. Johnson Bayou was buried under a storm surge.
Gales reached north to DeRidder and east to New Orleans. No Louisiana lives were
lost.
July 21, 1909 — A hurricane that hit east Texas left its mark on southwest Louisiana.
Heavy winds hit Cameron and Vermilion parishes. Two lives were lost. The storm
surge drowned hundreds of cattle in the marshes, and cotton crops from Grand
Chenier to Sabine Pass were ruined.
Aug. 15, 1915 — A hurricane that struck just west of Galveston brought punishing
winds as far east as Cameron and Vermilion parishes. Tides reached 11 feet at
Cameron, 10 feet at Grand Chenier and 9.5 feet at Marsh Island. The lightkeeper at
the Sabine Pass lighthouse had to turn the beacon lens by hand after vibrations
caused by the waves damaged the mechanism.
Great 1918 hurricane
On Aug. 6, 1918, a hurricane swept ashore in Cameron Parish. Johnson’s Bayou
reported a storm surge of nearly three feet, and houses in Grand Chenier and Creole
were swept away.
Winds at Lake Charles were estimated at 100 mph. Sulphur reported winds of 125
mph. The hurricane killed three people and destroyed seven hangars and 96
airplanes at Gerstner Field near Holmwood.
In the Goosport sawmill area in Lake Charles, fires broke out during the storm —
blazes so bright, DeQuincy residents saw the red glow at night.
In Westlake, most buildings were destroyed. Only a few Sulphur businesses
survived. The Union Sulphur Mines had $3 million in damages.
To the north, several DeQuincy homes and businesses were destroyed.
The Borealis Rex, a ship that followed a regular route between Lake Charles and
Leesburg (now Cameron), had left Lake Charles on the morning of Aug. 6 and had to
fight rising winds. In Prien Lake, the boat was driven against the shore and
passengers sought shelter in a nearby house.
When hurricane winds reversed out of the north, the Borealis Rex was carried a
mile south and sank under 10-foot waves.
The ship’s bell was salvaged and given to the Cameron Methodist Church. The
whole Borealis Rex was brought up in the spring of 1919, repaired and put back into
service.
In another ominous portent, the bell that had been put on the roof of the Cameron
Methodist Church blew off the roof in a later storm.
Respite, then storms
Between 1920 and 1937, southwest Louisiana was spared while hurricanes and
tropical storms hit central and southeast Louisiana. Then the fates again targeted
southwest Louisiana:
Aug. 14, 1938 — A hurricane came ashore at Cameron. Grand Chenier reported
hurricane-force winds. Lake Charles got rain and wind gusts of 60 mph.
Aug. 7, 1940 — A tight hurricane hit southwest Louisiana with sustained winds of 80
mph extending only 10 miles east and west of the eye. Six lives were lost. Muskrat
losses in the Cameron marshes were estimated at 75,000. National Weather Service
records show that Lake Charles got 6.77 inches of rain on Aug. 7 and 4.84 inches on
Aug. 8. That twoday record still stands.
Sept. 22, 1941 — A hurricane that hit Texas City caused winds up to 80 mph in
Cameron Parish, damaging crops and buildings. Aug. 19, 1942 — A hurricane ran
parallel to the coast for miles, then hit Galveston. As it passed Johnson Bayou, winds
were clocked at hurricane force, causing extensive damage.
Hurricane Audrey
On June 27, 1957, Hurricane Audrey, the most destructive storm in the Gulf
Coast’s recorded history to that date, hit Cameron Parish.
Audrey’s power, destruction and deadly results were astonishing.
An offshore oil rig reported winds of 180 mph. Winds onshore were clocked at over
100 mph. In the Gulf of Mexico, seas of 45-50 feet were reported. Audrey’s waves
were 20 feet tall and rode atop a 12-foot storm surge, forming a 32-foot wall of
water crossing the Cameron coastline.
Audrey killed hundreds of people; the commonly cited figures range up to 526.
The name “Audrey” was retired, never to be used again for an Atlantic hurricane.
The evening before the hurricane struck, thousands of crawfish crawled out of the
marshes and covered the ground as they scrambled north. Cameron residents
scooped them up by the washtub. Cameron residents were due to begin evacuating
at mid-day the next day. Perhaps they planned a farewell crawfish boil.
The hurricane came ashore early, just after midnight. By daylight, Cameron Parish
was destroyed.
Vanishing coast
On Sept. 10, 1961, Hurricane Carla dramatized a problem that had drawn little
official attention until then by chewing huge chunks out of the coastline for almost
the entire width of Louisiana. Carla also dropped off 10 tornadoes, smashed a fishing
pier in Holly Beach in Cameron Parish, severely damaged a section of the HugtheCoast highway, and moved an oil storage tank seven miles from its original location
in Hackberry.
Other storms also caused damage. On Sept. 16, 1971, Hurricane Edith moved
inland near Pecan Island; winds at Cameron reached 69 mph. Then on Sept. 7,
1974, Hurricane Carmen struck east of Vermilion Bay with winds of 120 mph. There
was damage but no deaths.
Then came a direct hit — and monstrous coastal erosion.
On Sept. 10, 1998, Tropical Storm Frances struck the southwest Louisiana and
east Texas coasts. Five homes in Constance Beach fell into the Gulf. Offshore oil
platforms trembled in 80-mph winds. More than 14 inches of rain fell on Lacassine
Wildlife Refuge south of Lake Arthur. Seven tornadoes touched down near Lake
Arthur, Estherwood, Basile, Oberlin and Lafayette. Coastal flooding and beach
erosion were reported to be the worst since Hurricane Carla in 1961.
The 21st century
As Louisiana entered the 21st century, the Galveston Hurricane of 1900,
Cameron’s Hurricane Audrey in 1957 and Mississippi’s Hurricane Camille in 1969
remained the most devastating storms on record.
The 1900 Galveston storm was the worst human disaster in American history, with
6,000 lives lost and the city of Galveston leveled. Audrey’s death toll was over 500
and Cameron Parish suffered almost-total devastation. Camille’s tidal surge remained
a U.S. record for height and inland penetration. It had winds of 215-220 mph.
By 2005, the subtropical climate of the Gulf states had been attracting new
residents for several decades. Three of the largest metropolitan areas in the United
States — Houston, Tampa and New Orleans — are in the Gulf coast zone, and with a
combined population of 7 million, there has been a boom in residential and vacation
homes on or near the coast.
The present combined value of insured property along the Gulf coast from Texas to
the Florida panhandle is greater than $500 billion. Texas alone has more than $168
billion in insured property in its 17 coastal counties.
Most-hit states
Louisiana joins Texas, North Carolina and Florida as the states most hit by hurricanes
and tropical storms. On average, a tropical storm or hurricane is expected to strike
the Louisiana coast about once a year.
Louisiana’s flat, marshy coastline intensifies hurricane danger. Storm surges
pushed by approaching hurricanes can reach 10 to 20 feet high and spread as far as
25 miles inland. The continental shelf extends up to 100 miles into the Gulf of Mexico
in some places, giving hurricanes a long stretch of relatively shallow water to build
storm surges.
First, Katrina
Before 2005, Audrey and Camille were the two major hurricanes that southwest
Louisiana residents heard about, read about or endured. In 2005, Katrina and Rita
joined them.
Hurricane Katrina began on Aug. 23, 2005, in the Bahamas as a tropical wave that
emerged from the leftovers of a Caribbean tropical depression. It moved north, went
inland in south Florida as a hurricane, crossed Florida and entered the warm Gulf of
Mexico where it picked up strength.
Katrina struck twice as it moved along the coast. It hit near Bay St. Louis, Miss.,
with 135-mph winds pushing a 27-foot storm surge. About 50 people were killed in
coastal Mississippi, including 30 in one Biloxi apartment complex.
Katrina continued westward, building waves as high as 48 feet on its way. It
slammed head-on into New Orleans, breached a protective levee and put 80 percent
of New Orleans under water, sent three-quarters of a million evacuees fleeing, and
devastated the city.
The Katrina death in Louisiana and Mississippi now totals 1,577. Damage is
estimated at $75 billion for Louisiana and $200 billion for all affected states.
Then, Rita
Hurricane Rita, the 17th named storm and fifth major hurricane of the 2005
season, began as a tropical depression below the Gulf of Mexico.
It drifted north, and as it neared the Florida Keys, it became a Category 2
hurricane with winds over 100 mph.
As it passed New Orleans, Rita opened more gaps in a levee system that had been
breached a month earlier by Hurricane Katrina.
Rita reached the western Gulf Coast on Sept. 21, chasing 2.7 million people out of
its way. Traffic backed up for miles. Vehicles ran out of gas trying to head west from
East Texas. Twenty-four people died in a bus that caught fire and exploded on
Interstate 45 near Dallas. Before it reached land, Rita caused the deaths of 107
people trying to flee the storm.
Rita made landfall in the Sabine Pass area of the Texas-Louisiana border in the
early morning of Sept. 24.
In Cameron Parish, the communities of Hackberry, Cameron, Creole, Grand
Chenier and Holly Beach were heavily damaged or destroyed. In Calcasieu, Lake
Charles, Sulphur and other communities were devastated.
And, the future
As Southwest Louisiana struggled to repair itself, the National Weather Service
said 2005 may have been the beginning of a decade-long cycle of such storms, and
the 2006 hurricane season could be even worse.
Information compiled from the National Weather Service office in Lake Charles. Data
is online at www.srh.noaa.gov/lch/site.htm.