Full moon high tide at landfall made this less than Cat 1 storm the killer, not AGW...
...plus a much higher population density than 50 years ago, and people building their houses right up to the surf line.
That wasn't the only feature.
Roger Pielke: Hurricanes and Human Choice
Its central pressure was the lowest ever recorded for a storm north of North Carolina, breaking a record set by the devastating "Long Island Express" hurricane of 1938.The lower the pressure, then as night follows day, the greater the storm surge also.