Hurricane Jeanne

Hurricane Jeanne was one of the deadliest Atlantic hurricanes on record, producing damaging floods in Haiti, and the last of four hurricanes to impact Florida in the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season. The tenth named storm, seventh hurricane, and fifth major hurricane of the season, Jeanne formed on September 13 near the Lesser Antilles, and was a strong tropical storm by the time it hit Puerto Rico on September 15, leading to seven fatalities on the island. A day later, it attained hurricane status while moving ashore the Dominican Republic, where it killed 23 people. Jeanne weakened while moving over Hispaniola, producing torrential rainfall over Haiti that killed 3,006 people. After emerging back into the Atlantic Ocean, Jeanne executed a large clockwise loop, during which time it strengthened into a major hurricane. While at that intensity, Jeanne struck The Bahamas on September 25. Early the next day, it made landfall in eastern Florida about 5 mi (8.0 km) away from where Hurricane Frances hit the state three weeks earlier. Jeanne weakened over the southeastern United States, eventually dissipating on September 29.

During its formative stages, Jeanne dropped 12 in (300 mm) of precipitation on the island of Guadeloupe, damaging hundreds of buildings from floods. Landslides and flooding affected the Virgin Islands, and around 20 people on St. Thomas required rescue. On Puerto Rico, seven people died during storm preparations, the storm itself, or subsequent carbon monoxide poisoning. Across the Dominican Republic, Jeanne killed 23 people, and produced floods that forced more than 37,000 people to leave their houses. In northern Haiti, floodwaters reached 16 ft (4.9 m) in the coastal city of Gonaïves, with more than 80% of the city of 100,000 people inundated. The floods and landslides destroyed houses and crop fields across the region. After the storm, Haiti's interim government, following a coup d'état in February of 2004, relied on security assistance from the United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), as well as international aid to rebuild. The emergency response to the floods ended on October 19. Subsequent violence and attacks on nongovernment organizations disrupted further aid distribution.

After completing its cyclonic loop, Jeanne hit both the Abaco Islands and Grand Bahama Island, damaging or destroying around 800 homes. Across Florida, the hurricane damaged or destroyed thousands of homes, most of which were previously damaged by hurricanes Frances and Charley. The collective impacts of the three hurricanes, in addition to Hurricane Ivan which struck Alabama, produced the largest relief operations in the history of both the American Red Cross and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Total damage from Jeanne in the continental United States was estimated at $7.5 billion. The hurricane also killed six people in Florida, two each in North and South Carolina, and one in Virginia. Jeanne produced a tornado outbreak from Florida to New Jersey, and also produced widespread flooding, particularly areas flooded by the previous hurricanes. Due to its widespread effects, the name Jeanne was retired and will never again be used for an Atlantic hurricane.