Charley (by HanKFranK) Hurricane Charley became the first category 4 hurricane to hit the U.S. in twelve years, coming ashore late in the afternoon on this day in 2004 at Port Charlotte after rapidly intensifying offshore. The pressure at landfall was 941mb, at North Captiva Island. Charley was a compact hurricane with a small radius of maximum winds, but caused extreme wind damage near the coast with winds 145-150MPH. Port Charlotte and Punta Gorda took the worst of the storm, though inland towns like Arcadia, Wauchula, and Lake Wales also took substantial damage from eyewall winds. Kissimmee-St Cloud and the eastern suburbs of Orlando also received hurricane force winds and significant wind damage. Charley exited as a much weaker category 1, with a central pressure around 50mb than at landfall. The storm never reintensified before sliding inland along the upper South Carolina coast around midday on August 14. Unadjusted damage figures from Charley were around 14 billion, ranking it second on the list behind Andrew at the time--though it was pushed to 4th the next year thanks to hurricanes Katrina and Wilma.
