If you use a windshield cover, you can at least forget about scrapping the ice off your windshield to save some time and hassle. It was so strong that it caused damage to coastal structures which were miles away from Pasco County south through southwest Florida and even destroyed ships smashing them against docks after pulling them off their moorings. *Those of us in school in Tampa remember it with dread and fondness. "Large burial mounds remaining from Tocobaga civilization are still present today, with the oldest one located overlooking Old Tampa Bay. Strong persistent winds will push a lot of water into the bay and theres nowhere for it to go, so it just builds up, said Brian McNoldy, a senior research associate at the University of Miamis Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric and Earth Science. Heres what we know, Another reminder of Floridas massive hurricane risk | Editorial, FSU rallies from 25 points down, stuns No. Even so, some of those facts are slow to sink in. Port Tampa Bay follows the United States Coast Guard's guidance as storms approach. This piece of folklore came from my co-worker, who grew up in Tampa, Florida. Storm survivor Ethel Swanson was 7-years-old when the storm hit. The First Street report also showed how climate change will push hurricane force winds farther inland, not just in Florida but in places like Arkansas and Tennessee. But it wasn't a catastrophic hit, and thus belief in something otherworldy protecting the area from a hurricane's worst wrath persists. Although he did not know much about the history of the Calusa Indians, what he did know was the legend in Tampa that the Calusa Indians cast a spell to keep them safe. war and disease brought by a Spanish explorer, Supernatural forces at play? Hurricane-force winds can destroy mobile homes and buildings. The oldest remaining one is located near Old Tampa Bay. Waves from the Bay almost reached the streets of Ybor City. The area has seen a fair share of damaging winds and storm surge flooding from plenty of tropical storms. To put it into perspective, according to news reports at the time, the cone of uncertainty stretched from Key West to Apalachicola in the Panhandle. As the Tampa Bay Times explains, it's likely that Ian will bring up to a foot of rain in the area and some experts, including meteorologist Jeff Masters, have compared it to 2005's Hurricane Katrina. (VIAVAL/Getty Images). With the Atlantic Ocean to the south and east and the Gulf of Mexico to the north and west, the coastal town is exposed to all sides to passing hurricanes. In those villages, the tribe would build mounds made of layers of shells and sand. As a result, Cape Hatteras has been exposed in the past to hurricanes that move up the Eastern Seaboard. Hundreds of years before them, so did the Tocobagan tribe, which built mounds along the Pinellas peninsula. A Pinellas resident for 45 years, she was waiting for Irma to make a turn like Hurricane Charley did in 2004. The conversation must grow louder. Oct. 25, 1921 marks 100 years without major a hurricane. It's certainly possible some of the pipelines could be damaged.". Some people believe American Indians here blessed the land to protect from hurricanes. We spent hours at the John F. Germany Public Library in downtown Tampa combing through newspapers on microfilm. "That'll be good," LaMarre said. Hurricane Gladys in 1968, Hurricane Donna, 1960, Hurricane Easy, 1950, and the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane. It made landfall in Big Pine Key as a category 4, causing devastating damage. Ron DeSantis took note of the regions vulnerability in a Monday afternoon news conference in Largo, Florida. If you ask people who lived in South Florida in 1992 if they understand whats its like to go through a catastrophic hurricane, most will say yes. "We've got the high areas in our country we'd be moving people and our assets and staging things in advance. 2023 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Tampa Bay area hasn't suffered a direct hit from a hurricane since 1929. "Do they want to protect their burial mounds," Farias wondered in the interview. It's been more than a century since a major storm like Ian has struck the Tampa Bay area, which blossomed from a few hundred thousand people in 1921 to more than 3 million today. Also known as the Tarpon Springs hurricane, the Category 3 storm leveled the region with up to 115 mph winds. "Technically speaking, Native Americans lived everywhere around the state," said Anne McCudden, executive director of the Seminole Tribe of Florida. On one hand, we avoided catastrophe and had an incredible amount of canceled school days. Or, the American Indians who once lived here blessed this place and made it safe from hurricanes. Kottlowski explained that Irma "was a Cat 1 when it passed just east ofdowntown Tampa with a tropical-storm-force wind field of over 300 miles. TAMPA, Fla. Tuesday, October 25, 1921, was the last time Tampa Bay got hit by a major hurricane. VIDEO: Man casually rides jet ski near Sarasota as Hurricane Ian moves in. This westerly flow steers systems from west to east. The explorers visited the Calusa tribe just south in Charlotte Harbor, and the Tocobaga just north in Tampa Bay, but they passed over the stretch of relatively linear coast in between. Most of the dead drowned in the storm surge. "The wind speeds move counterclockwise around these storms if it moved and it landfall north of Tampa Bay the Southwest winds would funnel all that water into Tampa Bay it would turn Pinellas County into about two islands, and the water would get trapped there for days," LaMarre said. The last direct strike was in 1921. However, many people lost power and much of the state was still affected. Comments that don't add to the conversation may be automatically or attacks, and spam will not be tolerated. FSU rallies from 25 points down, stuns No. The two which affected the Bay Area were Charley and Irma. But after wreaking havoc in the Florida Keys, Naples and Miami, Irma weakened and limped to the east of Tampa Bay as a manageable Category 1. "Their value, however, is that, in the short term, they usually show a 'path' of likely tracks for tropical storms, giving residents of those areas within the path more time to prepare.". "I've heard that one," she said. Bonni Fox, from a neighbor. "On the Port Resiliency Index, developed by the Gulf of Mexico Alliance, the Port scored 95%.". "I like to believe those things are true," Farias mused. It was so tightly wound that many likened it to a giant tornado, causing buzz saw damage along its path. Fox 13 reports that Tampa Bay residents are preparing for Hurricane Ian, a category 3 storm that could be catastrophic. Legends and luck are nice stories when it comes to hurricanes, but at some point Tampa Bay will be hit. Tampa Bay has dodged a direct hurricane hit for a century. "That just added huge credibility to this myth," Farias said. The petroleum facilities would be out of business for days at a time. Rui Farias, executive director of the St. Petersburg Museum of History, told the Tampa Bay Times after Hurricane Irmas near miss in 2017 that many people still believe it. "It looks a lot better out there from any of the beaches to the south," Heil said. Every room will have a view of the water. Skyrocketing property insurance rates will change some minds. 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After the infamous Tarpon Springs hurricane, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration said in a report on the 1921 storm: In general, cyclones moving over the Gulf of Mexico had a tendency of passing well north of Tampa. Hurricane Irma hit Tampa Bay at a Category 1 storm when once forecasted as a Category 5. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Not since the Tarpon Springs hurricane struck the region in 1921 has Tampa Bay been directly hit by a major storm. Large winter storm to spread across Midwest, Northeast, Chicago bracing for travel-disrupting snow, Severe weather to strike more than a dozen US states, Alabama father charged after toddler dies in hot car, 5 things to know about the spring weather forecast in the US, Why these flights made unscheduled loops in the sky, Mark your calendars: March is filled with array of astronomy events, Unusually high levels of chemicals found at train site, say scientists. "After this interview, I'm going to go knock on wood cause I'm superstitious," ABC Action News reporter Michael Paluska told Brian LaMarre, the Meteorologist in Charge at the National Weather Service in Tampa. ", Ybor City Tampa Bay, Florida, on Jan. 19, 2019. "Key West has faced several situations in the past where it has been brushed or directly affected by some of the strongest hurricanes to hit the United States. A new study warns that hurricanes are getting more dangerous because of climate change. Heres what we know. Evidence to support the tale does not exist, however, according to everyone who studies either county history or American Indian beliefs. "That the hurricanes are heading right for us and just veer off course.. This map of Cat 3 storms shows only one direct hit on Englewood in 1944 since 1851, Article debunks Indian Legend regarding storm-safety theory, Tampa Bays escape from Irma was more than luck, Sarasota has been safe from hurricanes for years. "Port Tampa Bay was also the first U.S. seaport to be named 'Storm Ready' by the National Weather Service when we received the designation. With determination, innovation, and ingenuity, Port Tampa Bay is rising to the challenge of a changing climate," Lisa Wolf-Chason, the Director of Communications for Port Tampa Bay, said. Along the coast, storm surge is often the greatest threat to life and property from a hurricane. The last direct strike was in 1921. The Anderson family has owned the property since the 1940s and lived in a private residence, 13-feet above sea level behind the mound, since 1953. Tampa has avoided a direct hit by a major hurricane since 1921." This map of Cat 3 storms shows only one direct hit on Englewood in 1944 since 1851 However The Great Hurricane of 1921, The No-Name Storm of October 08, 1993 and many lesser unnamed storms have done extensive damage Links related to the "Indian Legend" Hurricane Irma is the most recent in 2017. The National Hurricane Center is predicting storm surge in Tampa Bay and surrounding waters of between 5 and 10 feet (1.5 and 3 meters) above normal tide conditions and rainfall of between 10 and 15 inches (12 and 25 centimeters) because of Hurricane Ian. A report from the Boston-based catastrophe modeling firm Karen Clark and Co. concluded in 2015 that Tampa Bay is the most vulnerable place in the U.S. to storm surge flooding from a hurricane and stands to lose $175 billion in damage. More than 40% of St. Petersburg is in the coastal high-hazard area. "As they are in this two-story building, the water is rising even higher, and you know this was a kid's account talking about it. A storm like the 1921 hurricane would turn Pinellas County from a peninsula into two separate islands. "Because it is located by the shallow Tampa Bay, water piles up into the city, causing very significant storm surge along the coastline.". Breathing issues are possible at some beaches. Im convinced that geographically were incapable of being hit with a storm. manually removed by Facebook or AccuWeather. Clearly, when you look at the Tampa Bay area, one of the reasons why we fear storms is because of the sensitivity of this area and the fragility of this area, DeSantis said. But as seen below on this FEMA map, the swath of damage was very narrow. "It really tells us two things. The Tocobagans' village capital was where Safety Harbor is today, but their mounds, both sacred and burial, are found from the Gandy Bridge along the peninsula to the Gulf Coast.They either wanted to protect their lands, or "they wanted hurricanes to come here and punish us for Spaniards" who arrived here around the 16th century, Farias said. When he's not teaching a Florida history class at St. Petersburg High, he works as executive director of the Saint Petersburg Museum of History near the Pier. "The storm did weaken to a Cat 1 while making its closest approach to the Tampa area," AccuWeather's Chief Hurricane Expert Dan Kottlowski said, referring to the storm's Category 1 strength, which had dropped considerably from its Category 5 intensity by that point. A storm surge of up to 11 feet damaged and destroyed many structures along coastal locations from Pasco County south through southwest Florida. By The evacuations could affect 300,000 people or more in Hillsborough County alone. It derailed the railroad in that area which was obviously a significant impact to travel commerce and people coming into the area. The storm surge from that hurricane, estimated at Category 3 with winds of up to 129 mph ( 207 km/h) was pegged at 11 feet (3.3 meters). Why them? . The bottom line is, most people who live in the state have never experienced the full wrath of major hurricane. 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"There is. But it was damaged to varying degrees by hurricanes in 1926, 1944 and 1950, as well as Donna in 1960 and Charley in 2004. And it could be bad. Sarasota is protected from hurricanes because the American Indians who once lived here knew it was a safe place, which is why they decided to live here. Want next-level safety, ad-free? The findings highlight a counterintuitive effect of . Where to find fish fries in Tampa Bay during Lent, Two FL beaches make Tripadvisors best of the best, Worlds largest bounce house coming to Tampa, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. "Folk tales give us comfort, so we use something we can't disprove," Baram said. "Spaghetti plots" are collections of potential forecast tracks for tropical stormsbased on slightly different possible weather conditions. Many believe it protects them from hurricanes, even though Hurricane Wilma blew through town just two years ago. The primitive way of tracking storms in the 1920s would prove deadly for some. The last time Tampa Bay sustained a direct hit by a hurricane was in October 1921, a full century ago, before hurricanes were given names. However, that hasnt prevented the scientific community from noticing this odd pattern. Storm Team 8s Chief Meteorologist Jeff Berardelli explained. At least eight people died and damage was estimated at $5 million at the time. Tampa Bay is very surge-prone because of its orientation.. The last one hit more . Due to global warming, global climate models predict hurricanes will likely cause more intense rainfall and have an increased coastal flood risk due to higher storm surge caused by rising seas, Angela Colbert, a scientist at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory, wrote in a June report. The 20 U.S. cities most in danger of getting smacked by a major hurricane in the next decades are all in Florida. Others believe that they blessed the lands to stay eternally safe from destructive storms and hurricanes. According to Berardelli, hurricanes would have to make the perfect turn to the east in order to make landfall in Tampa Bay, therefore making a direct hit on the region would be somewhat difficult. "How devastating would an impact from a hurricane similar to the 1921 storm be in today's time?" The likelihood of storms making a direct hit on the Gulf Coast increases in September and even more in October, during the second half of the hurricane season, when cooler air moves south, and jet-stream winds, which blow around the Earth from east to west, take storm systems with them. A number of other explanations for the relative safety have surfaced, most of them questionable. The Predators will receive: Jeannot, 25, comes to Tampa Bay as he finishes up a two-year contract that carries an $800K average annual value. Since then, the Tampa Bay has remained untouched. Tampa Bay has had some close calls with hurricanes. Another reminder of Floridas massive hurricane risk | Editorial. 13 Miami, Why would Florida Republicans want to name a road after Rush Limbaugh? Amid all the science, a local legend has it that blessings from Native Americans who once called the region home have largely protected it from major storms for centuries. A family was rushing to higher ground as the storm surge came in. A view of the site of a 23-foot mound at Sacred Lands in St. Petersburg's Jungle Prada neighborhood. But, luckily, the area has avoided a major landfalling hurricane for nearly a hundred years. The only other hurricane known to have made a direct hit on Tampa Bay was the Great Gale of 1848, which made landfall in Clearwater, Florida in late September174 years ago. "Typically, when tropical systems get caught in the jet stream off the East Coast of the U.S., they tend to curve out to sea, but because of the location of Hatteras, hurricanes tend to clip that region before affecting anywhere else on the East Coast.". Depends on who you ask, says Rui Farias, who knows a thing or two about local history. "In order for Tampa to get a direct landfall, the storm has to hit them from the southwest," Kottlowski said. "I feel like being here," Anderson said. Those turned out to be false. Some photos were taken during the event. Tampa Bay has dodged a direct hurricane hit for a century It's one of the most populated areas on Florida's Gulf Coast, but hasn't had a direct hit from a landfalling hurricane in 100 years.. Explanations for the relative safety have surfaced, most people who live in the 1920s would deadly... Story has to hit them from hurricanes area which was obviously a significant impact to travel commerce and people into! 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