Because the Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale, which categorizes hurricanes' destructiveness based on their wind speeds, ranges from 1 to 5. Category 3 hurricanes and above are considered major, and the worst storms are Category 5, encompassing all hurricanes with sustained winds of 252 km/h or more. When a Category 5 storm hits, you can expect "catastrophic damage," according to a National Hurricane Center backgrounder. says Dennis Feltgen, a spokesperson for the National Hurricane Center. Here's a list of the different hurricane categories and what they mean, according to the National Hurricane Center:

Source: CBC News September 05, 2017 20:37 UTC