The stronger the hurricane and the shallower the offshore water, the higher the surge will be. Along the immediate coast, storm surge is the greatest threat to life and property. Winds and inland flooding can also cause damage. Earthquakes and hurricanes are not related. This results in a counterclockwise motion around the center of a hurricane.
All hurricanes start over the warm ocean.
Some dissipate over the ocean and some dissipate over land. The shear basically tends to blow the tops off of the thunderstorms. This does not allow the heat released by the thunderstorms to become concentrated. The heat has to become concentrated in order for the pressure to drop, which allows hurricanes to develop and intensify. Most of the damage was from storm surge and was confined to the coastline from near Panama City to Cedar Key, Florida.