was blinded by heavy rains. 4.34 inches of rain fell during the storm at Bates College. Many tree limbs were downed by high winds during the storm, and in Androscoggin County, Maine, 40% of the apple crop was destroyed. Hey Bonnie Hall, the mansion built by Russell Warren for the DeWolf family in Bristol, Rhode Island, was damaged beyond repair and demolished later in 1944. USS Warrington and other ships The storm was also responsible for sinking the Navy destroyer approximately east of Vero Beach, Florida, with a loss of 248 sailors. The hurricane was one of the most powerful to traverse the Eastern Seaboard, reaching Category 4 when it encountered Warrington, and producing hurricane-force winds over a diameter of . The hurricane also produced waves in excess of in height. The hurricane and the sinking of USS Warrington are documented in the 1996 book The Dragon's Breath - Hurricane At Sea, written by Commander Robert A. Dawes, Jr. (a former Commanding Officer of Warrington), and published by Naval Institute Press. In addition to Warrington, the Coast Guard cutters USCGC Bedloe (WSC-128) and USCGC Jackson (WSC-142) both capsized and sank off Cape Hatteras. Seventy-five men managed to escape onto life rafts from Bedloe and Jackson, but only 32 survived the rough seas and subsequent hours of exposure to be rescued two days later. The minesweeper YMS-409 foundered and sank killing all 33 on board, while the lightship Vineyard Sound (LV-73) was sunk with the loss of all twelve aboard. YAG-17, a full sized attack transport simulator permanently moored in Lynnhaven Roads, near Little Creek, Virginia, was wrecked. Finally, the hurricane drove the SS Thomas Tracy aground in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. See also List of Category 5 Atlantic hurricanes Hurricane Belle Hurricane Gloria Hurricane Bob References Further reading External links Photos of the damage to the New Jersey shore after the 1944 Great Atlantic Hurricane 1944 Great Atlantic Hurricane HPC rainfall site NOAA Hurricane Research Division’s Re-analysis Project 1940s Atlantic hurricane seasons Category 5 Atlantic hurricanes Hurricanes in Delaware Hurricanes in North Carolina Hurricanes in Rhode Island Great Atlantic Hurricane 1944 in North Carolina 1944 in Delaware 1944 meteorology