The Storm of the Century: Tragedy, Heroism, Survival, and the Epic True Story of America's Deadliest Natural Disaster: The Great Gulf Hurricane of 1900

In this gripping narrative history the beloved NBC weather personality vividly brings to life the Great Gulf Hurricane of the deadliest natural disaster in American historyOn the afternoon of September -mile-per-hour winds and fifteen-foot waves slammed into Galveston the prosperous and growing port city on Texass Gulf Coast By dawn the next day when the storm had passed the city that existed just hours before was gone Shattered grief-stricken survivors emerged to witness a level of destruction never before seen corpses littered the streets and were buried under the massive wreckage Rushing water had lifted buildings from their foundations smashing them into pieces while intensive winds had upended girders and trestles driving them through house walls and into sidewalks In less than twenty-four hours one storm destroyed a major American metropolisand awakened a nation to the terrifying power of natureThe Storm of the Century brings this legendary disaster and its aftermath into brilliant focus No other natural disaster has ever matched the havoc caused by the awesome mix of winds rains and flooding that devastated this bustling metropolis and shocked a young optimistic nation on the cusp of modernity Exploring the impact of the disaster on a rising nations confidencethe pain and trauma of the loss and the determination of the responseAl Roker illuminates both the energy and the limitations of the American Century and of nature itself.