Ask questions via twitter! Message any question to @answers on twitter. We'll publish the question and send you a reply each time there's a new answer.
Next Question

Question

 
 M¢25  Funded By Mahalo ? |  October 23, 2009 06:43 PM

On average, how long does it take the eye of a hurricane to pass over a given area?

If someone went outside during the lull of the eye, how long would they be safe before the wind picked up again?
Interesting Question?  Yes (0)   No (0)   
Email to a friend | RSS
 
 

 
   No Best Answer Selected
 
 


Answers (2)

Sort By
 
October 23, 2009 07:37 PM
Depends on the size of the hurricane, the speed that it's moving, and the size of the eye. A lot of variables to consider in your answer!

Hurricane eyes vary in size from about 5 miles to over 120 miles.http://gohsep.la.gov/factsheets/FactsAboutHurricaneEye.htm

Let's say that you're standing in the center of an eye that is 20 miles in diameter, and the hurricane is moving at 20 mph. (this is the speed of it's path, not it's spinning wind speed). You'd have about 30 minutes of time to be in the eye. There's no guarantee, however, that you wont' get some wind gusts and debris flying at you during that time.

Here's a good source on hurricane facts: http://hurricanes.noaa.gov/pdf/hurricanebook.pdf

Helpful Answer?  (0)   (0)    Tip expertknowledge for this answer
Permalink | Report
   Reply  
 
 
 
October 23, 2009 08:16 PM
Good answer, but not what I was looking for. See my answer to Suzd688

Report
 
 
 
October 23, 2009 07:43 PM
This is from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Begin Quote

"A hurricane may sustain an eye for several days. How long one might be in the eye if one were sitting in one place as the hurricane passed over, is a function of two things:

- How fast is the hurricane moving? Most hurricanes may move along at 10-20 mph, but in extreme cases, they could be moving as fast at 40 mph (pretty rare), or go much more slowly, or even stall out (“quasi-stationary” as they are called). How big is the eye? The average eye is 10-40 miles in diameter, but the extremes would be 5-60 miles wide.

- How close does the exact center of the eye come to you? If the exact center of the eye comes across your location, you will be in the eye longer than if you are just brushed by the edge of the eye. It is important to realize that most people who are “hit” by a hurricane never actually get into the eye at all because the storm itself is so large compared to the eye. Those who do encounter the eye usually get the worst winds because they go through the eyewall...twice!

End Quote

You can get other information at the site as well
http://www.aoc.noaa.gov/faq.htm#howlongdoestheeyelast

It is generally considered a bad idea to go out into the eye of a hurricane as it can last just minutes or for longer periods. It is best to stay inside until it is completely over. Have a battery operated radio with you so you get get news of when it is over.

Other links
http://www.wikihow.com/Survive-a-Hurricane

http://www.secretsofsurvival.com/survival/hurricane.html

Helpful Answer?  (0)   (0)    Tip suzd688 for this answer
Permalink | Report
   Reply  
 
 
 
October 23, 2009 08:20 PM
Two good answers, but not what I was looking for. I did the same research. Here's the thing. I'm going to be writing a novel during NaNoWriMo. A hurricane hits the town and I'd like to give an idea of how long a character stays out during the eye before getting swept away. I grew up in S. Florida and experienced a lot of hurricanes, but was too young to remember that detail. Any estimate will do as long as it's within reason, given how a hurrican works.

Report
 
 
 
October 24, 2009 10:24 PM
Giving an estimate is not an easy thing to do. It all depends on the factors i mentioned in my answer.

I have never actually been in a hurricane so i cannot draw from personal experience. I tried looking on the internet but there does not seem to be a lot of actual accounts of how long an eye lasted.

Found something that might help you though. This is the timeline of Hurricane Katrina. You can tell how fast the hurricane moved from this timeline. Maybe you can work out an estimate from this.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/09/0914_050914_katrina_timeline.html

Hope this helps and Good Luck on writing your novel.

Report
 
 
Buy Mahalo Dollars with Credit Card or PayPal

Top Members

This Week All Time
  • buddawiggi
    buddawiggi
    2nd Degree Black Belt
    26830 Points
    M$782.84 Earned
  • kty2777
    kty2777
    Purple Belt with a Brown Tip
    5313 Points
    M$198.17 Earned
  • opher
    opher
    Purple Belt
    4027 Points
    M$170.67 Earned
   See All
 

Most Popular Tags

mahalo(1585)
iphone(461)
music(458)
google(352)
food(313)
online(292)
beer(278)
money(262)
movies(254)
apple(250)
aotd(235)
health(217)
dog(202)
video(201)
free(201)
   See All
 

Categories

Welcome New Members


 
 
Mahalo Dollars are the currency of Mahalo Answers.

Each Mahalo Dollar costs $1.

Once you earn more than 40 Mahalo Dollars, you can request to be paid via PayPal. Each Mahalo Dollar is currently worth $0.75 when paid out via PayPal. Learn More

 
 

Please log in to use this function.