Between September 16th and 22nd, 1989 one of the most infamous and disasterous hurricanes in Atlantic history, Hugo, devastated portions of the Caribbean and South Carolina.

From the evening of the 17th through the morning of the 18th, the US Virgin Islands, and the northeastern tip of Puerto Rico bore the brunt of Hugo's exceptional violence. Alongside the thousands of residents who suffered through the terrifying experience, a small group of veteran storm chasers, including myself, had the rare opportunity to document the full force of an intense hurricane, during daylight hours, at a direct coastal location.

At the time of Hugo's landfall in Puerto Rico the storm was producing sustained winds near 130mph, with gusts over 160mph.

In commemoration of Hugo's 20th anniversary I'm presenting a new, digitally re-mastered, high-quality DVD edition of my chase footage, including many previously unreleased scenes, new special features and extra content. This seven minute introductory clip showcases some of the highlights from the main feature.

Without actually experiencing an event of this magnitude, first-hand, it's difficult to truly understand the incredible ferocity, unrelenting power, and somber aftermath a violent hurricane commands.

The new 20th anniversary commemorative edition DVD is dedicated to all those affected by Hurricane Hugo... to the meteorological, scientific, and storm chasing communities who strive to further our understanding of these amazing forces of nature... and to future generations who will carry the quest for knowledge forward.

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I have been restoring/preserving some of my family's old 8mm home movies, and this is vintage footage of my mom and brother (filmed by my dad) in and around Miami, Florida in the mid 1950's. The clip includes embarkation for a Bahamas cruise (on the ship SS Florida) from the Port of Miami... which, at the time, was located just off Biscayne Boulevard at the site of the present day American Airlines Arena and Bicentennial Park... the Miami News tower (now known as the 'Freedom Tower') can be seen in the background along with glimpses of the tops of the old Columbus and McAllister hotels. Other parts of the clip show the Goodyear blimp, a Cuban airliner taxying at Miami International Airport and scenes from the old Crandon Park Zoo and kiddie train ride on Key Biscayne.

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Following the violent June 5th, 2009 thunderstorm that produced exceptionally heavy rainfall and flooding over Miami Beach, another severe thunderstorm moved across the downtown Miami area on Saturday, June 6th... producing a small area of notable rotation (within a broader circulation), some very low and rapidly developing scud, and a brief period of torrential rain. On Sunday, June 7th, another severe storm developed over Northeast Miami-Dade county and produced a beautifully vivid supernumerary rainbow as it moved northeastward.

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After several months of dry conditions, the 2009 rainy season got underway in South Florida during the week of May 19th. The heavy rains have brought welcomed relief to a severe drought over Southeast Florida, helping to balance significant rainfall deficits (8 to 11 inches) between Miami and Palm Beach.

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Sony HDR-FX1000 full daylight testing. Iris: f/5.6, Shutter: 1/350th sec, WB: Auto, Gain: Auto, Gamma: Cinematone 2, Black Comp: Stretch, Knee Point: Auto, Color Level: +4, Color Depth: +4, Sharpness +4, Filter: Circular Polarizer

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Sony HDR-FX1000 full daylight testing. Iris: f/5.6, Shutter: 1/350th sec, WB: Auto, Gain: Auto, Gamma: Cinematone 2, Black Comp: Stretch, Knee Point: Auto, Color Level: +4, Color Depth: +4, Sharpness +4, Filter: Circular Polarizer

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Sony HDR-FX1000 low light testing. Zoom: Full (20x), Iris: f/3.4, Shutter: 1/60th sec, WB: Auto, Gain: Auto, Gamma: Cinematone 2, Black Comp: Compress, Knee Point: High, Sharpness +2, Filter: UV(0)

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Sony HDR-FX1000 low light testing. Zoom: Full (20x), Iris: f/8, Shutter: 1/250th sec, WB: Auto, Gain: Auto, ND: 1/64th, Gamma: Cinematone 2, Black Comp: Compress, Knee Point: High, Sharpness +2, Filter: UV(0)

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Sony HDR-FX1000 low light testing. Zoom: Full (20x), Iris: f/3.4, Shutter: 1/60th sec, WB: Auto, Gain: Auto, Gamma: Cinematone 2, Black Comp: Compress, Knee Point: High, Sharpness: +2, Filter: UV(0)

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A short clip from my chase footage as Hurricane Elena's textbook eye moves over Biloxi, Mississippi on the morning of September 2, 1985.

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During the first week of September, 2008 Hurricane Ike tore through the islands of Turks & Caicos and Great Inagua as a category four, with sustained winds of 135mph, before making landfall on the north coast of Cuba as a strong category three, with 120mph winds.

Ike crossed the eastern and central provinces of the Cuban mainland and moved offshore, paralleling the south coast of the island, making another landfall over the western portion of Cuba and emerging into the Gulf of Mexico.

The hurricane continued across the Gulf and made a final landfall near Galveston, Texas as a borderline category two/three, with 110mph winds, during the early morning hours of September 13th.

The hurricane caused extensive wind and storm surge damage in the affected areas, virtually obliterating several coastal communities on the Bolivar peninsula of the upper Texas coast.

With monetary losses over $31 billion (USD), Ike is now ranked as the third costliest hurricane in United States history.

From the afternoon of September 7th through the evening of September 9th, storm chasers Michael Laca, Jim Leonard, Jose Garcia and Max Hagen intercepted numerous outer rainbands, from Hurricane Ike, in the middle and lower Florida Keys, as the storm passed well to the south.

At the time of Ike's closest point of approach to the Keys, the hurricane was a category one with sustained winds of 80mph and a central pressure of 965mb (28.50in).

Although the center of Ike remained a significant distance (150 miles) to the south, the hurricane had a very large windfield and produced sustained tropical storm conditions (39-73mph), with gusts of near hurricane-force, across most of the Florida Keys, which resulted in some minor wind damage.

These strong winds produced a 2-3ft storm surge in exposed locations on the Atlantic side of the lower Keys. During high-tide, many low-lying areas experienced significant flooding.

Numerous tornadic thunderstorms were also embedded within the outer rain bands of Hurricane Ike and several confirmed reports of tornadoes and tornadic waterspouts have been received from locations throughout the Keys.

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This is a short time lapse documenting the approach of Hurricane Ike's Cirrus outflow shield to South Florida.

The first part of the clip is looking north-northeast over downtown Miami, Florida on the morning of September 7, 2008 as Hurricane Ike's Cirrus shield (in the background) expands westward, while Cumulus clouds stream in from the northeast with the low-level wind flow.

The second part of the clip, is looking east-southeast over the Florida Straits from Islamorada, in the upper Florida Keys, on the afternoon of September 8, 2008, and also shows the storm's outflow canopy expanding northward and westward while towering Cumulus move in quickly from the east-southeast.

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