Hurricane Gordon (1994)

The first location affected by Gordon was Central America, when it briefly moved over northeastern Nicaragua as a tropical depression.[2] Severe localized flooding occurred in Nicaragua, Panama, and most significantly Costa Rica.[21] There, several days of heavy rainfall damaged about 180 mi (300 km) of roads and bridges, mostly in rural areas. In Upala in the northern portion of the country, the rains damaged beans and rice crops. More than 700 homes were destroyed, leaving about 4,000 people homeless. Nationwide, the system killed six people and caused $30 million in damage.[16][22] In Panama, the floods killed two people.[21]

While passing south of Jamaica, Gordon dropped heavy rainfall,[2] which caused flooding in six parishes, mostly in Clarendon and Saint Catherine. The rains caused flooding and mudslides that blocked roads.[23] Gordon left $11.8 million in damage, mostly in Clarendon. About half of the overall damage was related to roads, and an additional quarter was due to crop damage. There were four deaths and two injuries in the country.[24] Two of the deaths were drownings.[25]

Rainfall totals from Hurricane Gordon

The broad circulation of Gordon produced a persistent southerly flow across Hispaniola, causing orographic lift in mountainous regions. This caused a prolonged period of heavy rainfall, reaching 14 in (360 mm) in Les Cayes in a 24‑hour period, and over 9 in (230 mm) in the same duration in the capital city, Port-au-Prince.[8] In Jacmel, Gordon dropped 13 in (330 mm) in about 12 hours.[26] The rains resulted in flooding and landslides across the country.[2] There was knee-deep flooding in the shantytown of Cité Soleil,[25] and in Jacmel, the rains increased levels along three rivers. There, the storm washed out the road connecting with Port-au-Prince,[27] and three bridges were destroyed. In Jacmel, 725 houses were destroyed, forcing 1,500 people to stay at shelters.[28] Gordon left portions of southeastern Haiti without water access.[27] About 10,800 houses were damaged to some degree, and an additional 3,500 homes were destroyed.[29] About 1.5 million people were directly affected in the country, mostly near Port-au-Prince and in the southern portion,[28] and more than 89,000 people were left homeless.[29] In Port-au-Prince, about 20,000 homes were flooded,[29] and the bridge connecting the city with northern Haiti was also flooded.[25] Overall damage in the country was estimated at $50 million.[18]

The floods and mudslides killed many people in Haiti, although the exact total will likely never be known. On November 19, officials reported 531 deaths, and by two days later the total was potentially as high as 2,000. On November 24, the death toll reached 824, and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported on December 21 that Gordon killed 1,122 people in the country.[2] Most of the deaths occurred in Port-au-Prince, Jacmel, and Léogâne.[29] Damage was heavier in Haiti than elsewhere along Gordon's track due to poor infrastructure consisting of shacks on flood-prone denuded hills.[28] The country suffers large death tolls from many hurricanes, caused in part by human activity. Large-scale deforestation left Haiti with about 1.4% of its forests as of 2004, leaving denuded mountain slopes that allows rainwater to wash down unimpeded. The lack of tree cover contributed to the devastating floods that caused most of Gordon's deaths.[30]

In neighboring Dominican Republic, Gordon caused flooding and landslides that disrupted travel and communications to the interior portions of the country. Several slums around Santo Domingo flooded.[8] The storm killed five people in the country.[2]

Shortly after moving over Jamaica, Gordon crossed over eastern Cuba. At Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, a station recorded 69 mph (111 km/h) sustained winds, with gusts to 120 mph (190 km/h) during a microburst. The winds were not representative of the storm, and Gordon's landfall intensity was estimated at around 46 mph (74 km/h).[2] The storm caused widespread power outages and forced several roads to close.[8] Damage was heaviest in Guantánamo Province, where 9 mi (17 km) of seawalls and two aqueducts were destroyed. The storm damaged or destroyed 43 bridges, damaged 1,106 mi (1,779 km) of roads, and wrecked 16.5 mi (26.5 km) of rail lines. About 3 mi (5 km) of underground electrical cables were damaged. There was heavy agricultural damage in southeastern Cuba, estimated at about $45 million. Gordon damaged 7,482 acres (3,028 hectares) of sugar cane fields and damaged or destroyed about 5.5 million banana trees. About 100,000 sacks of coffee were wrecked, amounting to $3.5 million in damage, and 50,000 litres of milk were ruined. While Gordon was paralleling northern Cuba, it produced high seas that caused flooding, including in Havana. Nationwide, the storm damaged 5,750 houses and destroyed 156 others. The cost of damage and reconstruction of homes and roads was $47.4 million, and there was an additional $9.5 million in damage to public buildings. Gordon killed two people in the country, which was kept to a minimum due to evacuations,[9] and damage totaled $102 million.[18] Two people were injured at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base.[25] The flooding from Gordon followed two other similarly damaging events in the preceding year.[9]

Gordon also affected the nearby Bahamas, producing 46 mph (74 km/h) sustained winds at Kemps Bay, Andros.[2]

In the Florida Keys, wind gusts up to 49 mph (79 km/h) caused minor damage to trees and motor homes. Intense rainbands caused flooding in low-lying and poorly-draining areas, mostly in the upper Florida Keys. High tides closed portions of U.S. 1.[11] In the Tampa Bay area, outer rainbands downed power lines and trees, one of which fell onto a car.[31]

While Gordon was moving across southern Florida, Virginia Key reported sustained winds of 53 mph (85 km/h), which was the highest in the state. Gusts reached 83 mph (134 km/h) at a location in southern Dade County. Similar to the Caribbean, the storm dropped heavy rainfall in southern Florida, with widespread areas reporting over 6 in (150 mm) in the eastern portion of the state.[2] Rainfall peaked at 16.1 in (410 mm) in Coopertown.[32] High waves from Gordon severely eroded beaches along the state's eastern coastline,[2] and damaged coral and artificial reef systems. Waves flooded coastal roads up to 2 ft (0.61 m) deep in Miami Beach, and also damaged seawalls.[19] Near Fort Lauderdale, the storm washed a 508 ft (154 m) cargo ship aground less than 150 ft (45 m) from the beach.[2] Several other boats sank or were beached, which prompted 37 rescues. One woman was rescued after being swept 3,000 ft (910 m) off a fishing pier in Boynton Beach.[19] Gordon spawned six tornadoes in the state, of which two did no damage and two caused minor damage. A tornado in Lake Worth damaged 39 homes and two businesses.[2] The most damaging tornado was an F2 in southern Brevard County, which originated as a waterspout and moved onshore near Barefoot Bay. It moved through a mobile home community, destroying 62 homes and damaging 227 others to some extent; damage from the tornado was estimated at $10 million. The same tornado injured 40 people, causing six to be hospitalized, and killed an elderly man who died due to head trauma.[2][19]

Across Florida, Gordon's winds damaged power lines and knocked down trees and traffic signals; about 425,000 people lost power due to the storm. The rains caused flooding in Dade and Collier counties, which damaged $275 million worth of crops,[2] mostly to vegetables and sugar cane.[33] In some locations, the crop damage was worse than during Hurricane Andrew in 1992, due to fewer crops being planted when Andrew struck the state.[34] Along Elliott Key, Gordon damaged the coral reef system to a greater extent than Andrew.[35] Inland flooding damaged buildings due to fast-rising water and roof collapses. In Volusia County, floods entered 1,236 buildings, causing $26 million in damage.[19] Flooding caused dozens of roads to close, some of which were washed out.[14] In the Everglades, flooding killed several deer.[19] Statewide, two people drowned in separate instances after driving into flooded areas. Three people drowned along beaches, including one man who died in a rip current while attempting to rescue his son. In Hillsboro Inlet, two people drowned after their boat was overturned by high waves.[2] Throughout Florida, Gordon directly killed eight people, and injured 43 people. There were also three indirect deaths; two were from traffic accidents, and one was related to a heart attack after a person pushed a stalled car in a flooded road. Statewide damage was estimated at $400 million (1994 USD, $690 million 2021 USD).[19]

Hurricane Gordon offshore the Outer Banks

After affecting Florida, Gordon produced rainfall along much of the eastern United States, extending as far north as New Jersey.[32] In North Carolina, rainfall peaked at 4.96 in (126 mm) in New Holland, and in Virginia the highest rainfall total was 5.25 in (133 mm) near Norfolk.[36][37] Sustained winds in the Hatteras, North Carolina area peaked at 50 mph (80 km/h) in Buxton.[38] Just offshore at Diamond Shoal Light, a station reported 10-minute sustained winds of 71 mph (114 km/h).[2] The hurricane produced tides of 2.7 ft (0.82 m) above normal in Frisco.[38]

High waves and tides resulted in significant beach erosion along the Outer Banks. The waves closed several portions of North Carolina Highway 12 for up to four days,[38] and also closed a portion of U.S. Route 70 in eastern Carteret County.[39] Heavy dune damage occurred on Ocracoke Island.[40] North of Hatteras Village, the high waves washed out 225 ft (69 m) of dunes,[41] and portions of the Outer Banks between Hatteras and Frisco were flooded up to 2.5 ft (0.76 m) deep.[19] The effects were similar to that of the 1991 Perfect Storm, although damage was lighter during Gordon.[38] The hurricane destroyed five homes in Kitty Hawk,[41] which were condemned after being previously damaged by Hurricane Emily in 1993.[2] Also in Kitty Hawk, the storm damaged 52 houses and 2 businesses. In Rodanthe, two homes sustained water damage. The cost of the storm in the state was estimated at $314,000.[42] Effects further south in North Carolina were lesser, although serious beach erosion was reported.[43]

Offshore, a family of four required rescue from the Coast Guard after their boat began filling with water in the midst of 17 ft (5.2 m) surf.[44] A 49 ft (15 m) sailboat was disabled about 115 mi (185 km) offshore Norfolk, Virginia, and the crew of three were also rescued by the Coast Guard.[2] The sailboat was sailing from Bermuda to Oxford, Maryland, but was halted after the engine failed, the anchor was ripped off, and the mainstay was torn.[45] The interaction between Gordon and a ridge over New England produced coastal flooding in eastern Virginia. Tides reached 4 ft (1.2 m) above normal in Virginia Beach, which washed away 100 ft (30 m) of a fishing pier. The high tides caused road damage and minor housing damage.[19]