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Tropical cyclones have affected Florida for centuries, certainly even prior to the discovery of the North American continent. The first recorded incident dates back to 1523 when two ships and their crews were lost off the western coastline. It is estimated that some 486 storms have visited Florida, about a third of them prior to 1900. Of the 327 hurricanes and tropical depressions recorded as having affected the state between 1900 and the present time, only 6 have entered Citrus County, none of which were any stronger than a category 2. Prior to Hurricane Gladys of 1968, damages from storms were primarily limited to crops and vegetation as a result of the sparse population of the county. Gladys, born in the warm October waters of the Western Caribbean, hit Homosassa in Citrus County on October 19th as an 80 MPH Category 1 hurricane. Dropping about 6 inches of rain, Gladys caused some coastal flooding, but wind damages were limited primarily to mobile homes. During the now notorious storm season of 2004, Citrus County received a visit from Hurricane Jeanne on September 26th, leaving 6,471 homes without power. Jeanne did cause damage to the older structures and mobile homes in the area, much of the county remained untouched. Read more . . . |