Decrease in Hurricane Winds After Landfall

Case studies of three destructive hurricanes: Carla, Camille, and Celia, as they moved inland, were performed to determine the change in horizontal wind speed distribution. Criteria for determining the storm's intensity were employed to describe storms in sparse data regions, i.e., while over the sea, to conform with their eventual description in relatively data-rich regions while over land. These criteria were considered critically as the storm's winds decreased after landfall. Resulting models of peak gust distribution for each storm are shown. Comparisons are made with Malkin's (1959) factors for wind decrease. Although the storms occurred after Malkin's study, his factors are representative of the synoptic maxima in two storms. For peak gusts other than the synoptic maxima, and for all peak gusts in the third storm, other considerations should be made for engineering estimates.