Ураган в Новом Орлеане (1915)

Category 4 Atlantic hurricane in 1915

The New Orleans Hurricane of 1915 was an intense Category 4 hurricane that made landfall near Grand Isle, Louisiana, and the most intense tropical cyclone during the 1915 Atlantic hurricane season. The storm formed in late September when it moved westward and peaked in intensity of to weaken slightly by time of landfall on September 29 with recorded wind speeds of as a strong category 3 Hurricane. The hurricane killed 275 people and caused $13 million (1915 US dollars) in damage.

According to the Atlantic hurricane reanalysis project, the 1915 New Orleans hurricane began as a weak tropical storm moving across the southern Windward Islands on September 21, 1915. Its tropical cyclogenesis was determined via analysis of atmospheric observations from the surrounding islands, though shipping in the region would confirm the storm's existence the following day. By September 28, the storm had entered the Gulf of Mexico. The hurricane maintained its gradual forward speed and fairly steady intensity as it approached the Louisiana coast. As the cyclone neared land, it entered a denser area of shipping traffic, allowing the storm's intensity to be more readily assessed. Using this measurement, the Atlantic reanalysis project calculated that the hurricane struck Louisiana with a lower pressure: Analysis of onshore observations also suggested that the storm made landfall with concentric eyewalls. and these remnants advanced northeastward into the Mid Atlantic states before they were last noted on October 1 over Pennsylvania.

Owing to the scarcity of shipping traffic across much of the Caribbean Sea, Light rain from the system fell far north in Puerto Rico and the Turks and Caicos Islands, with the latter reporting of rain. As the storm passed south of Jamaica, strong gales were felt in Kingston, Jamaica. Some winds were strong enough to cut telecommunications between Kingston and the outlying districts of the island nation. The hurricane's brushing of Jamaica led in part to raising cotton prices to a yearly high. Offshore, the United Fruit steamer Almirante sustained considerable damage but was able to return safely to Port Royal. Ships sailing for the Yucatán Channel and in western Cuban waters were warned to exercise extreme caution following the hurricane's passage of Jamaica. Winds peaked at in Havana, Cuba as the storm passed through the channel well to the city's west.

As potential impacts on the United States became more clear, the Weather Bureau issued storm warnings for virtually the entire extent of the Eastern Seaboard from Eastport, Maine southward to the Florida coast on September 27.

As the hurricane traversed the Gulf of Mexico from September 28 to September 29, it produced rough surf along its path. The cutter Miami was caught in the storm, but was able to use a heavily damaged ship as an anchor before resuming its trek towards Key West, Florida. Storm surge and rough seas produced by the hurricane along the Louisiana coast arrived shortly before the storm made landfall. Evacuees departing the coast as late as September 28 reported no abnormal tides along the shore. However, sea levels began to rise at abnormally rapid rates on the morning of September 29 as the hurricane neared. By the afternoon hours, low lying lands south of New Orleans and east towards Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, as well as areas adjacent to Lake Pontchartrain, were inundated by the quickly rising storm surge. Levee overtopping along Lake Pontchartrain resulted in the flooding of much of western New Orleans. Parts of Carrollton, New Orleans were submerged under as much as 8 feet (2 m) of water due to the levee failure, and much of this inundation remained for up to four days as the city's drainage system slowly drained the floodwaters; in other locations, floodwaters receded rapidly. At its height, the surge was estimated to have crested between in height, setting a record for the highest tide reported in the region. Ocean swells topped levees along the Mississippi River and progressed well upstream; at the confluence of the Harvey Canal and the Mississippi River nearly 100 mile (161 km) from the Gulf of Mexico, the river swelled to 6 feet (2 m) above normal. Elsewhere, waves above normal high tide were reported along the same river. and putting over 8000 telephones out of commission. Electric lighting was also disabled by the storm following the failure of city's power station. Damage to city owned property in New Orleans was appraised at nearly US$500,000, though the total amount of damage to all public and private property in the city was estimated to have been at least ten times greater at US$5 million. Damage to shipping along the Mississippi River in and around New Orleans was estimated at US$1.75 million. The hurricane also caused significant damage in areas around New Orleans, including the destruction of 90% of buildings destroyed along Lake Pontchartrain. Only one house remained standing in Leeville, Louisiana; similar destruction occurred between Golden Meadow, Louisiana and Cut Off, Louisiana, where 100 houses were demolished. The total damage to infrastructure in areas surrounding New Orleans was estimated at US$6.5 million. The heaviest rain fell within an area 25 mile (40 km) east of the center, though heavy rainfall occurred throughout the eastern half of the tropical cyclone as it moved inland. Franklin, Louisiana measured the highest rainfall associated with the storm with a reading of ; on September 30, of rain fell in Franklin, setting a September 24 hour rainfall record for the city. Precipitation spread ahead of the hurricane as it interacted with a stationary front draped over the Southeastern United States, causing widespread rainfall totals in excess of across much of Mississippi and Alabama. A 13 feet (4 m) storm surge rolled into St. Bernard Parish, the Rigolets, and the Lake Catherine area. Areas along the Lower Coast (south of New Orleans) were hit even harder than the city. A telegraph report states the situation:

Whole country between Poydras and Buras inundated. Levees gone, property loss appalling. Life toll probably heavy. Conditions estimated worse than ever before. Relief needed. No communications

There were 23 dead in Venice, Louisiana, with similar numbers in coastal towns of Frenier and LaBranche. Plaquemines Parish experienced the worst fatalities with deaths estimated at over 200; the bodies of some victims were never found. In Plaquemines Parish, there was severe flooding and miles of levees were washed away. Thousands of people were left homeless. The hurricane also wrecked many of the oyster boats, damaging the local economy. Some communities, including Breton Island and the town of Saint Malo, were completely destroyed. Though it was not as deadly as the 1893 Chenier Caminanda hurricane, this hurricane was the deadliest Louisiana hurricane until Betsy 50 years later.

Early reports that streets in Biloxi, Mississippi were inundated under 6 feet (2 m) were initially denied by Louisville and Nashville Railroad dispatchers. Mobile, Alabama did not experience significant damage as winds remained under , though storm surge A local train carrying relief supplies from Mobile was sent to affected areas, though most train service in the region was suspended.