• NASA
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    Twenty years ago this month, one of the most devastating hurricanes in U.S. history slammed into Florida, Louisiana and the Bahamas. Hurricane Andrew ravaged countless communities, causing 65 deaths and leaving a quarter of a million people homeless. At the time, Andrew was the costliest hurricane in U.S. history, racking up $30 billion in damages. Two decades have passed since Andrew made landfall in Florida on Aug. 24, 1992, but the destruction hasn't been forgotten.

    Click through to see the devastation Hurricane Andrew left in its wake.

  • Paul J. Richards/AFP/Getty Images
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    People sift through rubble after a tornado spawned by Andrew barreled through southern Louisiana. The hurricane caused at least 14 tornadoes in Louisiana, in areas including Acension, Iberville, Baton Rouge, Pointe Coupeee and Avoyelle. One tornado weaved through Laplace, La., killing two and injuring 32 others.

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    The water tower, a landmark in Florida City, stands over ruins. Violent winds, heavy rains, spinoff tornadoes and a 14-foot storm surge blew through Florida City, Homestead and other towns south of Miami.

  • AP Photo/Lynne Sladky
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    A man sits in front of debris that was once his house in Florida City. More than 1 million people were ordered to evacuate their homes throughout southern Florida before Andrew made landfall.

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    A resident of Homestead, Fla., asks for help Aug. 26 after Hurricane Andrew ravaged the area. The sign on the roof reads, "Help please! The block needs H20, can food, ice, gas, building supplies." Homestead was one of the areas hit hardest.

  • AP Photo/Mark Foley
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    Rows of houses were damaged between Homestead and Florida City. Although Andrew all but decimated Homestead in 1992, the city has  rebounded and today is double its pre-hurricane size.

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    This Miami apartment complex was all but gutted by the storm. While the hurricane did minimal damage to Miami's downtown business district, it leveled several suburbs south of the city.

  • AP Photos/Wilfredo Lee
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    A truck makes its way through floodwaters in Franklin, La. The storm thundered into St. Mary Parish with winds exceeding 100 mph and dumped 10 inches of rain in many places.

  • Robert Sullivan/AFP/Getty Images
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    Hurricane Andrew wrecked boats at Dinner Key in Miami's Coconut Grove area. Dade County was home to 50,000 recreational and commercial boats at the time, and the storm surge damaged thousands. Many of the vessels were tossed onto docks, as well as into parking lots.

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    A sailboat sits on a Dinner Key sidewalk after it washed ashore in the hurricane.

  • AP/Charles Krupa
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    Next: Stunning Hurricane Photos from Space

    Palm and coconut trees along Miami's Ocean Drive bend in the wind Aug. 24. Andrew hit Florida with wind speeds as high as 160 mph before moving into the Gulf of Mexico.