While high winds are commonly associated with the perils of hurricanes, the most destructive factor is the accompanying storm surge as it strikes land. Still surge, yet this occurs in a more indirect way than was previously thought. As the hurricane approaches land, water levels increase and are pushed onto and through the shoreline, causing major destruction. The size of the surge itself is determined by the slope of the shore, called the continental shelf, out into the ocean. If the slope is steep, the storm surge will not be as great as when it is shallower, which cause a more powerful surge due to the fact that the ocean’s depth is not great enough to absorb the energy and massive amounts of water. In fact, scientists have pointed out that one cubic yard of it weighs about 1, 700 lbs. Millions of cubic yards of surge can occur from one single storm, which, naturally, causes catastrophic damage. Another major contributor to the measure of destruction a hurricane causes is its movement. The speed of a hurricane as it makes landfall and moves across or inland is a major deciding factor upon the extent of the damage. Fast-moving hurricanes can often seem a blessing to the people and communities involved because their high speeds mean they will move on and away quickly, so they will not have a chance to dump as much water on the immediate area. However, lazy storms, and especially storms that stall on the coastline, become the cyclones of devastation. Because they move so slowly or even not at all and are able to sit spinning and reenergizing themselves from the ocean, torrential rains, winds, and flooding increase, and the storm surge becomes a perpetual battering ram of destruction. However, the power of a hurricane becomes immediately diminished once over land because it is disconnected from its warm water energy source, but this does not mean it is dead by any means.
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