Hurricane Michael upgraded to a Category 5 upon post-storm analysis

ROANOKE, Va. – NOAA released a full report Friday, saying that Hurricane Michael had been upgraded to a Category 5 storm. This comes nearly six months after the storm made landfall near Mexico Beach, Florida. 

As a Category 5 hurricane, Michael now becomes the first Cat 5 to make landfall in the U.S. since Andrew did so in 1992. Prior to that, there were two other Cat 5 landfalls on record - Camille in 1969 and the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935. 

The post-storm analysis was done by compiling data from aircraft measurments, surface winds and pressure, as well as satellite and Doppler radar estimates. 

No matter the category, Michael was strong enough to produce nearly $25 billion in damage as well as killing 16 people in the U.S.