(Charleston-AP) Sept. 21, 2004 - They are almost like trains coming into a station on a schedule this hurricane season: Charley, Gaston, Frances and Ivan. But, for most South Carolinians all storms will be measured by Hurricane Hugo.

Tuesday marks the 15th anniversary of one of the most costly hurricanes in US history.

Hugo powered ashore northeast of Charleston with 135 mph winds during the night of September 21st, 1989. Then-Governor Carroll Campbell told South Carolina, "It's prudent for me to urge the citizens of coastal South Carolina to plan for the worst."

The screaming winds tossed boats like toys, ripped down beachfront homes on barrier islands and destroyed motels in Myrtle Beach.

The swath of destruction extended hundreds of miles inland and essentially blacked out most of eastern South Carolina.

Hugo became by far the costliest storm ever in South Carolina after the damages were eventually totalled. When it had passed and the skies cleared, Hugo had caused $6 billion in damage and claimed 29 lives on the US mainland.

Hugo and Hazel in 1954 remain the only Category Four hurricanes to hit South Carolina. Both are among the most intense hurricanes in US history.

Hurricane Andrew would later cause even more damage than Hugo, but Hugo remains the second most costly hurricane to hit the US. The National Hurricane Center retired the name and there will never be another Hurricane Hugo.

A witness likened the damage to war, "The only thing I've seen come close to it is a combat zone where we've had a lot of airstrikes."

Updated 9:53pm by BrettWitt