Hurricane Charley was the first of four separate hurricanes to impact or strike Florida during 2004, along with Frances, Ivan and Jeanne, as well as one of the strongest hurricanes ever to strike the United States. It was the third named storm, the second hurricane, and the second major hurricane of the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season.
Here are 20 memorable images to mark the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Charley:
1-What the radar looked like just before 4 p.m. on Aug. 13, 2004
Hurricane Charley radar image taken on Aug. 13, 2004.
2-Adding insult to injury: Charley hit on Friday the 13th
A sign on a Fort Myer Beach business.
3-Burnt Store Marina building ends up on its side
The structure, which served as a yacht sales office at Burnt Store Marina, was tilted onto its side by severe winds during Charley.
4-Extensive damage at Four Winds Marina on Pine Island
Hurricane Charley damaged a rack of stored boats at the Four Winds Marina on Pine Island.
5-Few traffic lights were spared during Charley
A street line dangles from a downed line on Fort Myers Beach.
6-Hurricanes as powerful as Charley result in significant heartbreak
Dane Gomez, a resident of a mobile home off Florida Street in Punta Gorda, rummages through the wreckage of his home that was destroyed by Hurricane Charley. At least two residents of the park, Joanne and Gordon Hawkins, lost their lives.
7-People who lived here at the time will never for get the sea of blue tarps
Blue tarps dot the landscape in the Deep Creed subdivision in Charlotte County.
8-The Brothers Bush – Jeb and George assessed the damage
Former President George W. Bush wipes his eye while visiting the Punta Gorda historic district to witness the aftermath of Hurricane Charley. Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush stands to his left.
9-A heartfelt embrace after surviving Charley
Captiva resident Sherrill Sims gets a hug from fellow resident and friend Mary Bates almost a week after Hurricane Charley ripped through Sanibel and Captiva.
10-‘We lost everything’
Candace Gott reactss to the loss of her mobile home from Hurricane Charley. It was located in the Suncoast Estates in Punta Gorda. “We lost everything,” she said.
11-Which way was the wind blowing during Charley? This way
Palm trees were left bent sideways along a Pine Island tree farm after Hurricane Charley went through Southwest Florida in 2004.
12-Nothing looked normal after Charley
An uprooted tree impacted two homes east of Hickory Boulevard on Bonita Beach road after Hurricane Charley.
13-Catastrophic damage at airport
The hangars at the Punta Gorda Airport were blown apart.
14-A general state of everything being surreal
A boat at Laishly Marine was flipped over by the wind when Hurricane Charley passed through Punta Gorda on Aug. 13, 2004.
15-Standing Room Only at Emergency Operations Center
Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush visited the Charlotte County Emergency Operations Center in Punta Gorda on the 10-year anniversary of Hurricane Charley.
17-Everything looked crooked after Hurricane Charley
A pedestrian sign stands bent from the force of Hurricane Charley as a truck passes down a sand and water covered Estero Boulevard on Fort Myers Beach.
18-Another iconic image – carport flattened
A carport is collapsed on Fort Myers Beach after Hurricane Charlie brushed past the island.
19-It was truly an upside down world after Charley
An airplane lies upside down on Page Field in Fort Myers Saturday afternoon August 14, 2004 showing the wind effects of Hurricane Charley.
20-History will always remember Hurricane Charley
Hurricane Charley historic front page: Aug. 14, 2004
