Storm Watch No name storm
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A storm with no name
In the early morning hours of Saturday, March 13, 1993, the "Storm of the Century" hit Florida's West Coast with awesome fury. Hurricane-strength winds and a tidal surge as high as 12 feet in some places swamped houses, smashed cars, scooped up furniture, appliances and boats. (See related stories) Only Hurricanes Andrew and Hugo and a California fire inflicted more damage on the nation than this storm, which continued to wreak havoc as a record-breaking blizzard as it moved up the east coast of the United States.
Times photo by Kathleen Cabble Sea foam gusts like snow, covering everything in its path, along Bellair Beach in Pinellas County. High winds pushed water over sea walls along Pinellas beaches, flooding some areas. Along Florida's Gulf Coast, the no-name storm damaged or destroyed 18,000 homes and caused more than $500-million in property damage, more than double that of Hurricane Elena in 1985. Statewide, it killed at least 26 people, more than Hurricane Andrew. Among the dead: six members of one family, washed away as they attended a reunion. Related stories
Lost at sea (March 13, 1994)
The last voyage of the New Zest ( April 18, 1993)
Losing a home, then losing a life (March 18, 1993)
"I saw whitecaps breaking against my windows" ©Copyright 1999, St. Petersburg Times. All rights reserved.
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