Hurricane Andrew stands as one of the most devastating storms in U.S. history, making landfall in South Florida on August 24, 1992, as a Category 5 hurricane with sustained winds of 165 mph. It is one of only four Category 5 hurricanes to ever hit the continental U.S., alongside the 1935 Labor Day hurricane, Camille (1969), and Michael (2018). The storm ravaged the communities of Homestead and Cutler Bay in Dade County, destroying over 63,500 homes and causing $27.3 billion in damage (equivalent to $65 billion today), while leaving 65 people dead across its path. After devastating the Bahamas (killing 4 and causing $250 million in damage), Andrew struck Louisiana near Morgan City as a Category 3 storm on August 26, also causing $500 million in losses to Gulf oil platforms. The hurricane's aftermath included 1.4 million people losing power, the destruction of 70,000 acres of Everglades trees, and the accidental introduction of invasive Burmese pythons into the region. Andrew was the costliest hurricane in U.S. history until Katrina in 2005, and the costliest in Florida until Irma in 2017, cementing its legacy as a benchmark for catastrophic storm impact.