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"This is Jane Smith reporting to you from Miami, Florida, where it
looks like Hurricane Lili is getting ready to make landfall. Lili was upgraded from a tropical storm to a Category One hurricane when its winds increased to 80 miles per hour. Forecasters at the National Weather Center anticipate that Lili could grow into a Category Two hurricane, with winds reaching 96 to 110 miles per hour. For now, a hurricane warning remains in effect."
What do you think you would need to know if a hurricane were moving in your direction? Perhaps the most important question you would need answered is, "How bad is it?" To track the strength of hurricanes, Herbert Saffir, an engineer, and Robert Simpson, the director of the National Hurricane Center, invented the Saffir-Simpson scale in the 1970s. This scale rates hurricanes by their potential for damage on a scale of one to five.
A Category One hurricane means that the winds are between 74 and 95 miles per hour (mph), and that most of the wind damage will be seen in unanchored mobile homes, shrubbery, and trees. There may also be some flooding of coastal roads.
In a Category Two hurricane, the winds range from 96 to 110 mph. Roofs, doors, and windows might be damaged, and some trees will be blown down. Residents of mobile homes must prepare for extreme damage to their homes.
When a hurricane reaches Category Three, its winds are between 111 and 130 mph. These strong winds will cause damage to small residences, and large trees will be blown down. Flooding near the coast will destroy smaller structures, and larger structures may be damaged by floating debris. Evacuation may become necessary.
Category Four hurricanes cause tremendous amounts of damage due to wind speeds of 131 to 155 mph. Some small houses will lose roofs. Trees will be blown down. Mobile homes may be completely destroyed, and doors and windows face extreme damage. Residents may be required to evacuate coastal areas.
The most severe hurricane, a Category Five, brings winds greater than 155 mph. Some houses and buildings will lose their roofs, while others might be completely blown away. Massive evacuation of residential areas is likely.
The Saffir-Simpson scale is a valuable tool to help people prepare for a hurricane's strike. And, in the case of a hurricane, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."
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