Hurricane (Typhoon) in Coastal Dade, Florida

Hurricane Michelle after forming into a depression in the southwest Caribbean Sea on October 29 drifted north and became a tropical storm on October 31 and a hurricane on November 2. It turned northeast and made landfall along the south shore of Cuba as a category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. Michelle weakened as it moved across Cuba and into the central Bahamas. The center reached its closest approach to southeast Florida, about 170 miles southeast of Miami, around 4 am November 5. Tropical storm warnings were issued for southeast Florida at 10 pm, November 3. The minimum pressure and maximum winds along the southeast Florida coast occurred at Miami Beach with a barometer reading of 1001.2 mb and sustained winds of 37 knots with gusts of 44 knots. Fowey Rocks Light, just south of Key Biscayne, reported a peak gust of 53 knots. Storm surge was estimated to be 1-2 feet while rainfall amounts of 1 to 2 inches were widespread across the southeast Florida mainland. Two brief tornadoes were spawned by Michelle causing minor damage.