Despite threat of hurricanes, coastal population continues to grow

With the Atlantic hurricane season beginning, the U.S. Census Bureau wanted to spotlight the number of people living in areas that could be most affected by these storms.

IN HARM'S WAY

• 34.9 million - Estimated July 1, 2006, population most threatened by Atlantic hurricanes: the coastal portion of the states stretching from North Carolina to Texas. Twelve percent of the nation's population lived in these areas.

• 10.2 million - The 1950 coastal population of the states stretching from North Carolina to Texas. Seven percent of the nation's population resided in these areas.

• 24.8 million - Number of people added to the Atlantic and Gulf coastal areas from North Carolina to Texas between 1950 and 2006. Florida alone was responsible for the bulk of this increase (almost 15 million

• 244 percent - Percentage of growth of the coastal population of the states stretching from North Carolina to Texas between 1950 and 2006.

• 180,155 - Collective land area, in square miles, of the coastal areas from North Carolina to Texas.

• 3 of 20 - The number of the 20 most populous metro areas in 2006 that were within Atlantic or Gulf coastal areas from North Carolina to Texas. These areas are Houston-Baytown-Sugar Land, Texas (sixth); Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Miami Beach, Fla. (seventh), and Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla.

• Andrea - The name given to the first Atlantic storm of 2007. The next Atlantic/Gulf of Mexico/Caribbean storm will be named Barry.

• About 50 to 100 - Number of people killed by hurricanes striking the U.S. coastline in an average three-year period.

• Florida, 17.6 million - Estimated 2006 coastal population of Florida, accounting for half of the coastal population of the states stretching from North Carolina to Texas. Among the Sunshine State's coastal population, 10.5 million lived along the Atlantic and 7.1 million along the Gulf.

• 352 people per square mile - The 2006 population density of Florida's coastal areas. The Sunshine State leads the entire area between North Carolina and Texas in coastal population density.

HURRICANES PAST

• 38,000 - Population of Galveston, Texas, at the time of the city's "Great Storm" on Sept. 8, 1900, that killed more than 8,000 people. At that time, Galveston, Dallas and Houston had similar populations.

• 57,466 - Galveston's population in 2005 - nowhere near that of Dallas (1,213,825) and Houston (2,016,582).

• 331,917 - Population of Charleston County, S.C., in 2006. The county was devastated by Hurricane Hugo in 1989, when its population was 295,000, but has rebounded nicely since.

• 452,170 - Estimated population of New Orleans on July 1, 2005 - about two months before Hurricane Katrina struck.

• 223,388 - Estimated population of New Orleans on July 1, 2006 - less than one year after Hurricane Katrina struck. The city's population was down 50.6 percent from a year earlier.

• 1950 - The year the Weather Bureau officially began naming hurricanes.