Hurricane Francelia
| Category 3 major hurricane (SSHWS/NWS) | |
Hurricane Francelia at peak intensity on September 2
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| Formed | August 29, 1969 |
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| Dissipated | September 4, 1969 |
| Highest winds |
1-minute sustained: 115 mph (185 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 973 mbar (hPa); 28.73 inHg |
| Fatalities | 271 |
| Damage | $35.6 million (1969 USD) |
| Areas affected | Leeward Islands, Honduras, Guatemala, Belize |
| Part of the 1969 Atlantic hurricane season | |
Hurricane Francelia brought significant flooding to Central America, especially Belize and Guatemala. The sixth named storm and fourth hurricane of the 1969 Atlantic hurricane season, Francelia developed from a tropical wave in the southeastern Caribbean Sea on August 29. It moved west-northwestward and strengthened into a tropical storm on the following day. On September 1, Francelia reached hurricane status, shortly before re-curving west-southwest. While approaching Central America, the storm intensified and peaked as a 115 mph (185 km/h) Category 3 hurricane on September 2. Francelia weakened slightly before making landfall near Punta Gorda, Belize (then British Honduras) late on September 3. The storm quickly weakened inland and dissipated by the following day.
During its early stages, Francelia brought gusty winds and light rainfall to several islands in the Caribbean Sea. While remaining nearly stationary offshore Central America, heavy precipitation fell in some countries, especially Guatemala where severe flooding killed 269 people and caused $15 million in damage. In neighboring Honduras, the hurricane struck after the undeclared Football War, causing additional damage in the northern portions of the country. Damage in Honduras was heaviest on the offshore Bay Islands, and the hurricane damaged or destroyed the majority of two towns there. In El Salvador, flooding isolated towns for several days and caused crop damage. Several rivers in the region flooded, with the Belize River reaching 36 feet (11 m) above normal. Coastal areas of Belize lost electricity and telephone service, and high winds resulted in extensive damage to banana crops. Francelia ranked as the deadliest tropical cyclone in Guatemala, until Hurricane Mitch in 1998. Overall damage was estimated at $35.6 million, and there were 271 deaths.
The origins of Hurricane Francelia were from a tropical wave – an elongated low pressure area – that exited the western coast of Africa on August 19. It moved westward across the tropical Atlantic Ocean, and the annual summary of 1969 tropical cyclone activity indicated there may have been a tropical depression – a cyclone with sustained winds of less 40 mph (75 km/h) – briefly located within the system. On August 26, an area of convection, or thunderstorms, developed along the wave, about 800 miles (1300 km) east of Barbados. A Hurricane Hunters flight two days later reported no low-level circulation. As the system moved through the southern Lesser Antilles, ship and land observations suggested a circulation had developed, signalling the formation of a tropical depression in the extreme southeastern Caribbean Sea early on August 29.
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Wikipedia