Wed, Jun 25th 2008, 00:00
Islands like Dauphin Island are thin strips of land just off the mainland that play a major role in buffering the mainland from the full fury of the storms that rage in from the North Atlantic ocean.
The islands off the Gulf Coast of the United States of America form Barrier Islands. Hurricanes have always plagued the barrier islands. On average, there are 11 storms each year during the north Atlantic hurricane season, half of them become hurricanes. On the barrier islands there are many tales of particularly violent storms over the centuries. Hear tell of locals tying themselves to oak trees to ride the storm, and goats escaping up trees to avoid alligators. A particularly violent hurricane in 1717 prompted the French to move their colonial capital to New Orleans from Dauphin Island for more shelter from the damage of these storms.
Each successive storm causes more erosion to the exposed side of the barrier islands and slowly over time they change shape. The western side of Dauphin Island is most vulnerable to the arrival of hurricanes, and much damage is suffered each time a hurricane passes over. Dauphin Island was not in the eye of the storm when Hurricane Katrina blasted the coastline in August 2005 but the effects of the storm were dramatic. When the storm passed, the island was divided into two halves. Click here to see the aerial pics.
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