Hurricane Betsy September 8, 1965 [Dade County Water Control Division Report]

Documenting Hurricane Betsy’s destruction across Dade County.

“Most of the data in this report were gathered as soon as the storm was over as part of an effort to assess what had happened. To record in one place this data along with selected comparative data and brief comment serves to make a record of a historic event; to inform other agencies who will prepare either more detailed or more general reports; to permit re-evaluation of present flood criteria; and to use this event as a basis of future comparison.” – pg 1.

This fascinating report on the destruction wrought by Hurricane Betsy was published shortly after the 1965 storm by the Dade County Public Works Department Water Control Division. Miami was one of several urban centers to be hit by the cyclone and this assessment presents an in-depth assessment of the meteorological events. Fold-out maps, tables of statistics, and accompanying commentary outline observed rainfall measurements, the areas of flooding, peak water levels, and more.

Hurricane Betsy was a catastrophic Category 4 storm that became the first tropical cyclone in Atlantic history to cause over $1 billion in unadjusted damages, earning it the nickname “Billion Dollar Betsy.” It devastated large portions of the Bahamas, Florida, and Louisiana, though effects were felt as far as the Ohio River Valley. The hurricane’s aftermath (80+ dead and 250,000+ displaced) directly led to the creation of the National Flood Insurance Program.