"Hurricane" comes from the Yucatan's Carib Indians' god of violent storms and  thunderbolts: "Huracan." The terms hurricane,cyclone,huracan, and typhoon all mean the same thing.

Hurricane Hugo wrecked this home.

A hurricane can have a diameter of 700 miles. Hurricanes can cause waves in  excess of 25 feet above normal.Those high waves attack the land along with heavy rain.Flash flooding and mud slides are big problemns. In fact the studies show that 90% of the deaths in hurricanes are caused by drowning. A single area can have 20-30 inches of rain.

The North Atlantic is not the only  place where hurricanes happen.Those are the hurricanes that are most likely to hit the US.But there also is hurricanes in the North and South Pacific and the Indian Ocean near Australia.