NASA

Three Category 5 storms formed in the Gulf during the blockbuster 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, each more intense than the last, and each about a month apart. Wilma was the last of the three, and it turned out to be the strongest storm ever measured in the Atlantic basin.

The country was still grappling with the horrifying aftermath of Katrina’s destruction along the Gulf Coast when Rita slammed into southwestern Louisiana as a Category 3 storm on Sept. 24, bringing even more destruction and turmoil to the beleaguered Gulf region.

As it turned out, the most intense storm was yet to come.

Hurricane Wilma tapped into the warm Caribbean waters, and paired with low wind shear in the atmosphere, and the storm underwent a record-setting and staggering period of intensification.

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