quickly it strengthened from a Category 1 hurricane to a Category 4. (Took a couple of hours.) The hurricane hit the Florida Gulf coastline on August 9, and was the strongest hurricane since Hurricane Andrew 12 years prior. The hurricane was expected to hit Tampa, but suddenly changed direction and places such as Punta Gorda, Port Charlotte, Fort Myer and Orlando were hit hard. Punta Gorda, being one of the worst hit towns, ended up being reduced to rubble.