The Seawall

The Great Galveston Hurricane, known regionally as the Great Storm of 1900, was the deadliest natural disaster in U.S history, one of the deadliest hurricanes to affect Canada, and the fourth-deadliest Atlantic hurricane overall. The hurricane left between 6,000 and 12,000 fatalities in the United States; the number most cited in official reports is 6,000. Most of these deaths occurred in the vicinity of Galveston after storm surge inundated the entire island with 8 to 12 feet of water. In addition to the number killed, every house in the city sustained damage, with at least 3,636 destroyed. Approximately 30,000 people in the city were left homeless, out of a total population of nearly 38,000. The disaster ended the Golden Era of Galveston, as the hurricane alarmed potential investors, who turned to Houston instead. The Gulf of Mexico shoreline of Galveston island was subsequently raised by 17 ft and a 10 mi seawall erected.The first observed hurricane of the season, the tropical cyclone was first detected by a ship well east of the Windward Islands on August 27. Initially at tropical storm intensity, it slowly strengthened while moving steadily west-northwestward and entered the northeastern Caribbean Sea on August 30. The storm made landfall in the Dominican Republic as a weak tropical storm on September 2. It weakened slightly while crossing Hispaniola, before re-emerging into the Caribbean Sea later that day. On September 3, the cyclone struck modern day Santiago de Cuba Province and then slowly drifted along the southern coast of Cuba. Upon reaching the Gulf of Mexico on September 6, the storm strengthened into a hurricane. Significant intensification followed and the system peaked as a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 145 mph on September 8. Early on the next day, it made landfall near present day Jamaica Beach, Texas. The cyclone weakened quickly after moving inland and fell to tropical storm intensity late on September 9. The storm turned east-northeastward and became extratropical over Iowa on September 11. The extratropical system strengthened while accelerating across the Midwestern United States, New England, and Eastern Canada before reaching the Gulf of Saint Lawrence on September 13. After striking Newfoundland later that day, the remnants entered the far North Atlantic Ocean and weakened, finally dissipating near Iceland on September 15. The storm brought flooding and severe thunderstorms to portions of the Caribbean, especially Antigua and Cuba. It is likely that much of South Florida experienced tropical storm force winds, though mostly minor damage occurred overall. Hurricane force winds and storm surge inundated portions of southern Louisiana, though no significant damage or fatalities were reported. The hurricane brought strong winds and storm surge to a large portion of east Texas, with Galveston suffering the brunt of the impact. Further north, the storm and its remnants continued to produce heavy rains and gusty winds, which downed telegraph wires, signs, and trees in several states. There were two deaths in Illinois, and one each in Missouri and New York. Property damage from the storm throughout the United States was estimated at $30 million . The remnants also brought severe impact to Canada. In Ontario, damage reached about $1.35 million , with $1 million to crops. There were at least 52 deaths – and possibly as many as 232 deaths – in Canada, mostly due to sunken vessels near Newfoundland and the French territory of Saint-Pierre.
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