One of the most incredible aspects of Hurricane Ian is seeing the ocean pull away from the shorelines prior to the storm surges. It is a phenomenon usually associated with tsunami and to see it with a hurricane is quite rare.
Hurricane Ian has shown up one important detail that is often forgotten about......elevation
Fort Myers at a little over 3 meters elevation was always going to be subjected to more storm surge damage than Tampa at 15 meters elevation.
Inundation from storm surges in both Fort Myers and Tampa have been very severe, which when you consider the difference in elevation is unusual....put that with the retraction of the ocean directly prior to the surges, which gives those surges that bit more strength...the pull out then push harder effect.
The thing that concerns me is if a hurricane of similar or identical behavioural traits as Ian...or Katrina....hit the city of Miami head on. Miami...especially the highrise waterfront...is just 2 meters elevation.
People might think that it would not take a direct hit....well in 2012 New York took a direct hit from Sandy and NYC was severely inundated by storm surges without the retraction as seen at Fort Myers and Tampa and NYC has a 10 meter elevation
Miami has been growing upwards for many decades, the ground is mostly reclaimed sand/swamp. Hurricanes have brushed Miami but so far not many have done a full on direct hit and none have been as strong as Ian or Katrina on landfall or experienced the retraction prior to surge as per Katrina and Ian.
I understand that Miami and Florida in general is classed as the snowbird playground and the jewel in the holidaymakers crown and that developers are forever expanding their real estate.
But personally I cannot dismiss the very real dangers that seem to be being ignored.
Hurricanes are getting stronger, the retraction prior to surge of Ian is virtually identical to Katrina......the bulk of Florida is built on unstable sand/swamp land. Florida has the greatest number of sinkholes in the world and that number grows daily. There are high and low rise building collapses right along both Gulf and Atlantic coastlines on a frighteningly regular basis, most never get into the media for fear of speading panic.
A city like Miami that is built on and over the sea if it took a direct hit....simply will not survive another Katrina or Ian or worse.
Miami's 2 meter elevation....that is just 6.5ft......think about it.
And still developers are allowed to keep building their glittering towers, themeparks.....
2 meters/6.5ft......
Counting the cost of Fort Myers and Tampa and all the other areas swamped out by Ian, let alone the collateral damage done by high winds and torrential rain from Ian....recreate that as Miami city center and waterfront and...well....doesn't bear thinking about really, does it?
