Destruction at dawn: What Hurricane Andrew did to South Florida 23 years ago - Miami Herald
Hurricane Andrew struck South Miami-Dade 23 years ago, Aug. Hurricane Andrew, which killed at least 10 people in Dade County, knocked out power to 1. 3 million households, punished South Dade and changed the very nature of the region, left a cleanup job Monday of nightmarish dimensions. President Bush came to Miami for a firsthand look at a hurricane expected to cost more than Hugo. Andrew's eye hit shore near Florida City, 25 miles south of downtown Miami, at 4:52 a. m. , descending with wind gusts up to 168 miles per hour. In Andrew's wake here, power may be out a week or more in some sections of South Dade, the county imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew to fight growing instances of looting and the president pledged an immediate $50 million in federal disaster aid --... By far, the worst damage was from Kendall south to Florida City. Homestead Air Force Base was one casualty: every building was either destroyed or damaged, said Navy Cmdr. "Homestead Air Force Base no longer exists," said Toni Riordan of the state Community Affairs Department. The Keys escaped relatively unscathed, with the greatest damage in Key Largo. In South Dade, Andrew tossed. Source: www.miamiherald.com
