Hurricane Ivan was a large, long-lived, and devastating tropical cyclone that caused widespread damage in the Caribbean and United States. The ninth named storm, the sixth hurricane, and the fourth major hurricane of the active 2004 Atlantic hurricane season, Ivan formed in early September and reached Category 5 strength on the Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale (SSHS). Ivan caused catastrophic damage in Grenada as a strong Category 3 storm, heavy damage in Jamaica as a strong Category 4 storm, and then severe damage in Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, and the western tip of Cuba as a Category 5 hurricane. After peaking in strength, the hurricane moved north-northwest across the Gulf of Mexico to strike Pensacola/Milton, Florida and Alabama as a strong Category 3 storm, causing significant damage. Ivan dropped heavy rain on the Southeastern United States as it progressed northeastward and eastward through the Eastern United States, becoming an extratropical cyclone on September 18. The remnant low of the storm moved into the western subtropical Atlantic and regenerated into a tropical cyclone on September 22, which then moved across Florida and the Gulf of Mexico, and then into Louisiana and Texas, causing minimal damage. Ivan degenerated into a remnant low on September 24, before dissipating on the next day.
Ivan caused an estimated US$26.1 billion (equivalent to $ billion in ) in damage along its path, of which $20.5 billion occurred in the United States.
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Meteorological history
The origins of Ivan were from a tropical wave, which developed into a tropical depression on September 2 to the southwest of Cape Verde. It moved westward and strengthened into Tropical Storm Ivan on September 3, the ninth named storm of the season by the National Hurricane Center (NHC). Two days later, Ivan reached hurricane strength while moving at a low latitude across the Atlantic Ocean, the sixth hurricane of the season. It intensified rapidly, becoming a major hurricane late on September 5, the fourth of the season. Ivan reached Category 4 intensity on the Saffir-Simpson scale at 00:00 UTC on September 6, but rapidly weakened due to dry air. On September 7, Ivan restrengthened and passed just south of Grenada with winds of 125 mph (205 km/h). After entering the Caribbean Sea, Ivan strengthened further and became a Category 5 hurricane on September 9, just north of the Netherlands Antilles. Two days later, the hurricane passed 23 mi (37 km) south of Jamaica. It fluctuated between Category 4 and 5 intensity in the Caribbean, reaching peak winds of and a minimum pressure of . The hurricane passed within of Grand Cayman on September 12, and two days later passed 17 mi (28 km) west of the westernmost tip of Cuba. Once over the Gulf of Mexico, Ivan weakened slightly as it turned to the north toward the Gulf Coast of the United States. At 06:50 UTC on September 16, Ivan made landfall at Gulf Shores, Alabama, as a Category 3 hurricane, with sustained winds of 120 mph (195 km/h). It weakened quickly over land, falling to tropical depression status over Alabama, and becoming an extratropical cyclone over Virginia on September 18. The remnant low of Ivan drifted off the U.S. mid-Atlantic coast into the Atlantic Ocean, turning southward and moving across Florida. It redeveloped into a tropical depression in the Gulf of Mexico on September 22, and became a tropical storm with a secondary peak of 60 mph (95 km/h). Ivan weakened before making landfall late on September 23 near Cameron, Louisiana as a tropical depression. It dissipated on September 24.
Records On September 3, Ivan became the southernmost Atlantic hurricane at 9.5° N. Later that day, it became the southernmost major hurricane in the Atlantic at 10.2° N. Ivan was also the southernmost Category 5 hurricane at the time in the Atlantic, at 13.7° N, until it was surpassed by Hurricane Matthew in 2016. Ivan's duration as a Category 4 hurricane or stronger was longer than any other tropical cyclone on record, with a total of 198 hours. It was surpassed by Hurricane Ioke in 2006, which held the intensity for 216 hours. When Ivan was in the Gulf of Mexico on September 15, a tide gauge recorded a wave height of . Because the gauge likely did not record the highest wave, researchers estimated that waves could have reached a height of . It was the largest significant wave height in United States territorial waters, surpassing an observation in the Gulf of Alaska in January 1991. The hurricane also produced the fastest seafloor current, at . After hitting the United States, Ivan produced the largest tornado outbreak associated with a tropical cyclone, with at least 118 confirmed twisters.
Preparations
Caribbean Due to the threat from Ivan, the first tropical cyclone warnings and watches were issued on September 5. Hurricane warnings were issued from Trinidad and Tobago to Saint Lucia, including Barbados and Grenada. Tropical storm warnings were also issued for the northern coast of Venezuela through the Guajira Peninsula of Colombia. A hurricane watch was also issued for the ABC islands. Over 1,000 people evacuated to emergency shelters on Grenada, including hundreds in low-lying areas in the capital city. Some shelters were damaged during the hurricane, forcing the evacuees to go elsewhere. Overall, the population responded little to the official advisories and recommendations, which potentially contributed to the death toll on the island. More than 1,000 residents of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines evacuated to 28 emergency shelters. Barbadian officials closed schools and government buildings, opened shelters, and turned off the power grid as a preventative measure. Saint Lucia opened four shelters, and Tobago opened seven shelters, housing around 560 people. Schools, businesses, and airports closed in Trinidad and Tobago. Many schools and businesses were closed in the Netherlands Antilles, and about 300 people evacuated their homes on Curaçao. Oil refineries were closed in Curaçao and Aruba, while offshore production halted in Trinidad and Tobago. In Venezuela, thousands of people evacuated from coastal areas. Four airports closed in the country.
As Ivan progressed westward, hurricane warnings were issued for both Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. On September 10, Jamaican Prime Minister P.J. Patterson declared a public emergency. About 500,000 Jamaicans were told to evacuate from coastal areas. More than 1,000 shelters were set up across the country. About 2,600 British vacationers were flown away from Jamaica via the Dominican Republic. The national blood bank requested residents to donate blood, in anticipation of potential injuries. Air Jamaica canceled all flights to and from the island, as well as inter-island flights; aircraft were transported to the United States until the storm passed. Businesses in Kingston were closed, and fishermen secured their boats to trees. Residents in the Cayman Islands stayed in emergency shelters during the hurricane. A tropical storm warning was issued for the southern coast of Haiti, and a hurricane watch was issued for the southern coast of the Dominican Republic. Shelters housed about 4,000 people in Haiti. The World Health Organization and the Pan American Health Organization distributed four emergency kits to southern Haiti, capable of covering basic needs for 40,000 people. A flight from Port-au-Prince to Miami was canceled. The Cuban government issued a hurricane warning for the western portion of the country, including Isla de la Juventud. Throughout Cuba, 2,266,068 people evacuated due to Ivan, about 60% of whom to the houses of relatives. Off Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, about 12,000 people evacuated from Isla Mujeres.
United States As early as September 9, the NHC anticipated that Ivan would hit southern Florida as a major hurricane within five days. On September 10, Florida Governor Jeb Bush issued a state of emergency. The NHC first issued a tropical storm watch for the Florida Keys on September 12. A mandatory evacuation was issued for all residents and visitors of the Florida Keys, and about half of Monroe County residents evacuated the islands. The mandatory evacuations prevented the delivery of products, which caused widespread fuel and food shortages at commercial establishments.
After Ivan's threat shifted to the northern Gulf Coast, officials issued mandatory evacuations across the gulf coast, estimated at over 1 million people. Alabama Governor Bob Riley issued a state of emergency for the state on September 13. On September 14, the NHC issued hurricane watches for the northern gulf coast, and later that day issued a hurricane warning between from Grand Isle, Louisiana to Apalachicola, Florida. Evacuations along the Florida panhandle occurred as far east as Taylor County, leading to school closures. Mandatory evacuations were issued for coastal areas of Alabama south of Interstate 10, including parts of Mobile. All lanes on I-65 were rerouted to go north to allow for more drivers, known as contraflow. In Mississippi, evacuation of mobile homes and vulnerable areas took place in Hancock, Jackson, and Harrison counties. Around 600,000 people evacuated across southeastern Louisiana, including residents in Greater New Orleans who were advised to evacuate. The Louisiana Superdome was used for special needs residents unable to evacuate. Contraflow was used along Interstate 10 (I-10); however, there were still significant traffic jams, and four elderly women in Louisiana died during the evacuations. Ivan prompted the evacuation of 270 animals at Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo in Gulf Shores, Alabama to a zookeeper's house located 20 mi (32 km) inland. The hurricane also caused several sports matchups to be adjusted, including a soccer match in Tuscaloosa between the University of Alabama and the University of Alabama at Birmingham, a Major League Baseball series between the Florida Marlins and Montreal Expos, and the season opener between the Tennessee Titans and Miami Dolphins.
After Ivan reformed, a tropical storm warning was issued from the mouth of the Mississippi River to Sargent, Texas, which included areas that were under hurricane warnings six days earlier.
Impact +Deaths and damage by country Country Totaldeaths Directdeaths Damage(2004 USD) Refs Barbados 1 1 Cayman Islands 2 0 Cuba 0 0 Dominican Republic 4 4 Grenada 39 39 Jamaica 17 17 Saint Lucia 0 0 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 0 0 Trinidad and Tobago 1 1 United States 57 25 Venezuela 3 3 Totals: 124 90 Along its path, Ivan led to 124 fatalities, either directly or indirectly related to the hurricane. The death toll in the Caribbean reached 64, mainly in Grenada and Jamaica. There were also 57 fatalities in the United States, including 25 directly related to the hurricane. Ivan produced more than $21 billion in damage, including $3 billion in the Caribbean, and $18.8 billion in the United States.
Southeastern Caribbean and Venezuela