27.8 ft (Hurricane Katrina)
Chat with our AI personalities
"Storm surge" is the above-normal water level caused by tropical storms, especially by the high winds. The storm surge can be higher or lower than otherwise might be the case depending on the tides; a storm surge at high tides can be far more destructive than the storm at low tides.
No, high winds and storm surge are two different weather phenomena. High winds refer to the movement of air at high speeds, while storm surge is an abnormal rise in sea level during a storm that can cause flooding in coastal areas. Storm surge is typically caused by the strong winds and low pressure of a storm pushing water towards the shore.
When the storm surge of a hurricane comes in at high tide the affect is worse, as the height of the high tide is added to the storm surge to produce a storm tide. The high tide is highest during the full and new moon phases.
Low pressure also contributes to the storm surge.
Storm tide occurs when the storm surge of a hurricane comes in on top of high tide. The heights of the storm surge and high tide are added together, resulting in worse flooding than if they same storm had struck at low tide.