Texas Hurricane Center


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The Texas Hurricane Center for Innovative Technology (THC-IT) will promote interdisciplinary research, education and training to develop state-of-the-art products and technologies to mitigate the wind, flooding and storm surge damages in the built environment due to hurricanes in the Gulf Coast region. The center will develop protocols for the speedy recovery of the public and private sectors (utilities, hospitals, petrochemical industries, transportation facilities, offshore platforms, cities and communities) following a hurricane.

How are hurricanes categorized?
Hurricanes are categorized by the Saffir-Simpson Scale, which is a 1-5 rating based on the storm's intensity.

Category 1
74-95mph winds; 4-5 ft. storm surge

Category 2
96-110 mph winds; 6-8 ft. storm surge

Category 3
111-130 mph winds; 9-12 ft. storm surge

Category 4
131-155 mph winds; 13-18 ft. storm surge

Category 5
155+ mph winds; 18+ ft. storm surge

How many Category 5 hurricanes have hit the US?
Only three Category 5 hurricanes have made landfall in the US: the Labor Day Hurricane in 1935, Hurricane Camille in 1969 and Hurricane Andrew in 1992.

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