1950
How is the intensity of a hurricane season measured? One way is by simply counting the number of TS's and hurricanes. But some seasons have a profusion of weak TS's, and some have quite a few major hurricanes. How can that be accounted for? ACE. Anyway, by ACE, the 1950 season is the second most intense ever. (The most intense is 2005.)
1950 was also the first year for named storms. The names came from the Joint Army/Navy Phonetic Alphabet, Able Baker Charlie etc. This system was used for 1950, 1951, 1952. The name list was the same every year: ie, the first storm was Able in all three years. No names were retired.
Two interesting hurricanes struck this year, Easy and King. Both were (obv) Florida hurricanes. Easy made landfall a little north of Tampa after executing two loops offshore. Those loops produced a prodigious amount of rainfall near the coast, over 40 inches in some places which is an amazingly high amount of rain. The first February 2010 snowstorm in Philly produced 28 inches (officially) - that's about 2 inches of rain. King is notable for being one of the rare major hurricanes to directly make landfall on the core of a city: Miami, in this case. It caused a fair amount of damage in the area, and a similar landfall today would be an acid test for Miami's skyscrapers (which probably weren't around in 1950).
1951
Two notable storms, Able and Charlie. Able is known as the only major hurricane ever in May, and is one of my favorite storms because of that distinction and its strange track. However, Able did little damage in the US: its main effect was high surf and presumably radical waves. Charlie did not hit Florida, or even the US: it hit the Yucatan. The storm caused heavy rain in Jamaica and destruction of crops in the Yucatan. It later hit Tampico still as a major hurricane and heavily damaged that city.
1952
Two notable storms: an unnamed storm and Fox. The unnamed storm is probably unnamed because it formed on Groundhog Day. We do not know of any other tropical storm that formed in February in any year. The storm made landfall in southwest Florida around the Everglades. Fox, on the other hand, is notable because of its strength, making landfall in Cuba as a major hurricane, where it caused the customary heavy damage.
1953
This was the first year when female names were used for the storms. Male names did not start to be used until 1979. Two notable storms: Alice and Florence. Alice is notable because it formed in May and had a strange track. Florence caused heavy rainfall in Florida and Alabama.
1954
Three notable storms: Carol, Edna, and Hazel. Carol was a slightly weaker and smaller version of the 1938 hurricane when it struck Long Island and Connecticut. Heavy damage. Edna hit Maine and Atlantic Canada. Heavy damage.
Hazel was mean. Puerto Rico suffered from bad flooding. In true Haitian fashion, a thousand people died. Hazel then made landfall as a Cat-4 (the only one ever) in North Carolina, causing heavy damage in Myrtle Beach, Wilmington, and other areas I'm not familiar with. Even Raleigh received winds over 100mph. Plenty of flooding in West Virginia, Virginia, and Maryland. Hazel kept going and became extratropical as it tracked into Canada. Around Toronto, the storm caused massive floods, destroying many bridges and other structures. The storm probably caused the worst flood in Toronto's history. Hazel was certainly the most severe hurricane for Toronto ever (not that there are many other contenders) and quite possibly the worst hurricane for Canada ever (Juan in 2003 would be the other contender).
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Friday, July 30, 2010
1945-1949
Huh, Wikipedia's featured article of the day is on Hurricane Grace (1991).
1945
One hurricane managed to scrape the entire coast of Texas with at least TS-force winds, which is pretty impressive. Not much on Wikipedia about it, though. Another hurricane made landfall on Homestead, Florida, where Andrew made landfall. The storm damaged the Army base east of Homestead. This was the strongest hurricane for the Miami area until Andrew. (Not necessarily the worst, though.)
1946
Another year, another Florida hurricane. The storm pounded the western edge of Cuba, but weakened rapidly as it approached western Florida, in the time honored tradition of storms in the Gulf. Damage was extensive in Cuba but not in Florida.
1947
This season had a very important Florida storm, the Fort Lauderdale hurricane. It made landfall as a Cat-4 as a huge storm, with a hurricane-force wind radius of 240 miles. The storm was slow moving and caused massive amounts of rain, nearly overtopping the dikes at Lake Okechobee. (I say nearly: this was no 1928 repeat.) The storm then made landfall east of New Orleans and tracked over the city, flooding a large part of it. Wikipedia sez the storm would do $11.72 billion in damage today...I think that's far too low. This was about as mean a cyclone as ever hit the United States, especially since its track passed over important metro areas.
1948
What, another Florida hurricane. And like many Florida hurricanes, its strongest winds and worst impacts were reserved for Cuba, which has seriously been a barrier to much greater destruction in the US. Cuba is like the US's barrier island. (So is Hispaniola) The storm caused flooding around Miami but there wasn't too much damage.
1949
Florida hurricane! This one made landfall near West Palm Beach and destroyed the citrus industry again. I don't know how that industry survived this decade. Plenty more Florida storms to come too. Anyway, yeah, lots of damage. Texas hurricanes are more interesting to me, and this one tracked right over downtown Houston. The storm damaged rice crops in the area and also damaged cars for some reason.
1945
One hurricane managed to scrape the entire coast of Texas with at least TS-force winds, which is pretty impressive. Not much on Wikipedia about it, though. Another hurricane made landfall on Homestead, Florida, where Andrew made landfall. The storm damaged the Army base east of Homestead. This was the strongest hurricane for the Miami area until Andrew. (Not necessarily the worst, though.)
1946
Another year, another Florida hurricane. The storm pounded the western edge of Cuba, but weakened rapidly as it approached western Florida, in the time honored tradition of storms in the Gulf. Damage was extensive in Cuba but not in Florida.
1947
This season had a very important Florida storm, the Fort Lauderdale hurricane. It made landfall as a Cat-4 as a huge storm, with a hurricane-force wind radius of 240 miles. The storm was slow moving and caused massive amounts of rain, nearly overtopping the dikes at Lake Okechobee. (I say nearly: this was no 1928 repeat.) The storm then made landfall east of New Orleans and tracked over the city, flooding a large part of it. Wikipedia sez the storm would do $11.72 billion in damage today...I think that's far too low. This was about as mean a cyclone as ever hit the United States, especially since its track passed over important metro areas.
1948
What, another Florida hurricane. And like many Florida hurricanes, its strongest winds and worst impacts were reserved for Cuba, which has seriously been a barrier to much greater destruction in the US. Cuba is like the US's barrier island. (So is Hispaniola) The storm caused flooding around Miami but there wasn't too much damage.
1949
Florida hurricane! This one made landfall near West Palm Beach and destroyed the citrus industry again. I don't know how that industry survived this decade. Plenty more Florida storms to come too. Anyway, yeah, lots of damage. Texas hurricanes are more interesting to me, and this one tracked right over downtown Houston. The storm damaged rice crops in the area and also damaged cars for some reason.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
1940-1944
1939
I forgot to mention it in my last post, but there *was* a pretty significant storm in another ocean, the California tropical storm, which lived up to its name: it made landfall as a tropical storm around Long Beach. The rain was unusually heavy for Los Angeles and there was extensive flooding. No tropical storm has made landfall on California since then.
1940
The worst storm of the year hit Savannah and the surrounding area as a Cat-1 storm. The storm caused over 10 inches of rain over a wide area in South Carolina and Virginia, where its remnant ended up. Dozens died, millions were cost.
1941
Two significant storms hit the US this year. The first hit Texas around Matagorda Bay costing $7 million. Houston saw winds equivalent to those experienced 67 years later. The storm also had a notably unusual track. The second storm was also a featured article, as was the season itself. It made landfall south of Miami and again in the Panhandle. The storm seems to have been notable for causing unusually little rainfall in Florida, with places near the center of the storm getting an inch or less. So the damage was done by wind instead, which brought salt water undiluted by copious rainfall farther inland than normal. The hurricane was actually less costly than the Texas hurricane earlier in the season.
1942
No hurricanes from this season have Wikipedia articles. Two hurricanes did hit Texas: one at Crystal Beach the other at Palacios. Both were Cat-1's at landfall so they probably didn't do too much damage.
1943
Texas had a fair number of hurricanes back in the 1940s...the hurricane that hit this year was quite notable. It's the Surprise Hurricane and had several unique features. First, it formed and struck in late July. Hurricanes do hit Texas in July (Dolly, Claudette) but it's more common for them to hit in August and September. Second, a plane flew (intentionally) into the hurricane - this was the first such occurrence. (Now it happens regularly) Third, although officially only a cat-1 at landfall, it produced quite a bit of wind damage throughout Houston, which has led to theories it might have been stronger than cat-1. Fourth, news about the storm was censored. Its existence was unknown outside TX and LA. Two refineries were shut down because of damage - again, this was censored. Many measurements of the storm were destroyed. There has been no censorship of hurricane advisories since this storm.
1944
Two big storms in this season. The first was the little sibling of the 1938 storm, the Great Atlantic hurricane (an official name, actually - the first officially named storm). The storm managed to sink a Navy destroyer and several other ships. The storm grazed the Outer Banks and made landfall in Long and Rhode Island.
The other storm of the season struck Cuba and Florida - western Cuba and Sarasota. Wiki sez the storm would be extremely costly today - it hit Sarasota as a Cat-1, but Sarasota is a populated area so the storm probably would cause a lot of little damage. If that makes sense. The storm was definitely a lot worse in Cuba. Western Cuba is such a hurricane magnet.
I forgot to mention it in my last post, but there *was* a pretty significant storm in another ocean, the California tropical storm, which lived up to its name: it made landfall as a tropical storm around Long Beach. The rain was unusually heavy for Los Angeles and there was extensive flooding. No tropical storm has made landfall on California since then.
1940
The worst storm of the year hit Savannah and the surrounding area as a Cat-1 storm. The storm caused over 10 inches of rain over a wide area in South Carolina and Virginia, where its remnant ended up. Dozens died, millions were cost.
1941
Two significant storms hit the US this year. The first hit Texas around Matagorda Bay costing $7 million. Houston saw winds equivalent to those experienced 67 years later. The storm also had a notably unusual track. The second storm was also a featured article, as was the season itself. It made landfall south of Miami and again in the Panhandle. The storm seems to have been notable for causing unusually little rainfall in Florida, with places near the center of the storm getting an inch or less. So the damage was done by wind instead, which brought salt water undiluted by copious rainfall farther inland than normal. The hurricane was actually less costly than the Texas hurricane earlier in the season.
1942
No hurricanes from this season have Wikipedia articles. Two hurricanes did hit Texas: one at Crystal Beach the other at Palacios. Both were Cat-1's at landfall so they probably didn't do too much damage.
1943
Texas had a fair number of hurricanes back in the 1940s...the hurricane that hit this year was quite notable. It's the Surprise Hurricane and had several unique features. First, it formed and struck in late July. Hurricanes do hit Texas in July (Dolly, Claudette) but it's more common for them to hit in August and September. Second, a plane flew (intentionally) into the hurricane - this was the first such occurrence. (Now it happens regularly) Third, although officially only a cat-1 at landfall, it produced quite a bit of wind damage throughout Houston, which has led to theories it might have been stronger than cat-1. Fourth, news about the storm was censored. Its existence was unknown outside TX and LA. Two refineries were shut down because of damage - again, this was censored. Many measurements of the storm were destroyed. There has been no censorship of hurricane advisories since this storm.
1944
Two big storms in this season. The first was the little sibling of the 1938 storm, the Great Atlantic hurricane (an official name, actually - the first officially named storm). The storm managed to sink a Navy destroyer and several other ships. The storm grazed the Outer Banks and made landfall in Long and Rhode Island.
The other storm of the season struck Cuba and Florida - western Cuba and Sarasota. Wiki sez the storm would be extremely costly today - it hit Sarasota as a Cat-1, but Sarasota is a populated area so the storm probably would cause a lot of little damage. If that makes sense. The storm was definitely a lot worse in Cuba. Western Cuba is such a hurricane magnet.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
1935-1939
1935
I'm not sure what the worst storm to strike the US is. By death toll? Galveston, 1900. By cost? Katrina. But the hurricane I'd least want to be in, the most ferocious hurricane to strike the US, must be the Labor Day hurricane of 1935, which made landfall with 185 mph winds on the Florida Keys. At those wind speeds - it's like being in a tornado, except the tornado is exceedingly large and you're in it for hours. It must have been hell. The storm destroyed the local railroad and killed many people who were working on what later became US Route 1. The storm was the third most intense Atlantic hurricane ever (behind Gilbert and Wilma) and the most intense landfalling US hurricane ever.
A bit of comic relief: the Yankee hurricane, which like the people from damn Yankee land came to south Florida from the northeast in November. Wiki sez the damages reached nearly a trillion dollars, which I doubt somehow.
1936
This was one of those seasons that produces a fair amount of storms (sixteen) but not many are strong. The most severe was probably a Cat-3 that grazed the Outer Banks and passed quite close to the northeast US coast, but little is known about it. It was quite damaging to the Outer Banks but few people lived there then or now.
1937
The extratropical remnants of one hurricane (still with hurricane force winds) hit Nova Scotia. Other than that nothing else really happened.
1938
The New England hurricane, or Long Island Express, was the worst hurricane of the 20th century for that area of the country. The storm was a Cat-5 at its peak and recurved around the Bahamas, but instead of going northeast and safely out to sea, the storm zoomed north (it's the fastest hurricane on record) and struck Long Island, Connecticut, and Rhode Island with a massive storm surge and Cat-3 winds. It was a sudden storm - the day started nice and the storm hit in the afternoon. There was no warning of the storm. Several hundred people died and some communities were abandoned. 13 feet of water flooded downtown Providence.
1939
Not much in this season. This was probably the worst storm of the season for the US. It did cause some damage in Florida and Alabama from flooding.
I'm not sure what the worst storm to strike the US is. By death toll? Galveston, 1900. By cost? Katrina. But the hurricane I'd least want to be in, the most ferocious hurricane to strike the US, must be the Labor Day hurricane of 1935, which made landfall with 185 mph winds on the Florida Keys. At those wind speeds - it's like being in a tornado, except the tornado is exceedingly large and you're in it for hours. It must have been hell. The storm destroyed the local railroad and killed many people who were working on what later became US Route 1. The storm was the third most intense Atlantic hurricane ever (behind Gilbert and Wilma) and the most intense landfalling US hurricane ever.
A bit of comic relief: the Yankee hurricane, which like the people from damn Yankee land came to south Florida from the northeast in November. Wiki sez the damages reached nearly a trillion dollars, which I doubt somehow.
1936
This was one of those seasons that produces a fair amount of storms (sixteen) but not many are strong. The most severe was probably a Cat-3 that grazed the Outer Banks and passed quite close to the northeast US coast, but little is known about it. It was quite damaging to the Outer Banks but few people lived there then or now.
1937
The extratropical remnants of one hurricane (still with hurricane force winds) hit Nova Scotia. Other than that nothing else really happened.
1938
The New England hurricane, or Long Island Express, was the worst hurricane of the 20th century for that area of the country. The storm was a Cat-5 at its peak and recurved around the Bahamas, but instead of going northeast and safely out to sea, the storm zoomed north (it's the fastest hurricane on record) and struck Long Island, Connecticut, and Rhode Island with a massive storm surge and Cat-3 winds. It was a sudden storm - the day started nice and the storm hit in the afternoon. There was no warning of the storm. Several hundred people died and some communities were abandoned. 13 feet of water flooded downtown Providence.
1939
Not much in this season. This was probably the worst storm of the season for the US. It did cause some damage in Florida and Alabama from flooding.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
1930-1934
1930
Only two storms formed in this season (presumably). The second one was non-trivial though, being one of the stronger hurricanes to hit the Dominican Republic, directly striking Santo Domingo. Anyway, insane damage there, but little damage in the other places it visited (Cuba, Puerto Rico, Florida). The hurricane is the fifth deadliest Atlantic hurricane ever (possibly) with a death toll between 2000 and 8000.
1931
After a parade of tropical storms the season was enlivened by the deadliest hurricane in Belize's history, which killed 2500 people. The storm struck Belize City, then the capital of the nation, on September 10, an important holiday in Belize (St. George's day). I'm guessing the pretty quick intensification also killed some people - the storm was only a TS 24 hours before landfall. The season is also notable for having a very straight hurricane.
1932
There isn't much information about it on Wikipedia but a Cat-4 struck Freeport this year, and Freeport's about the worst possible area for a hurricane to hit because then the greatest storm surge and winds are probably felt on Galveston. A Cat-5 struck the Bahamas, specifically a place called Abaco Island, causing the usual damage. It didn't really affect any other land areas. A Cat-3 struck Puerto Rico, crossing the island from east to west. The storm killed hundreds and extensively damaged the crops. I get the impression that this was one of the worst storms in Puerto Rico's history. As a bonus, the season concluded with a devastating Cat-4 that hit Cuba in November. This was probably the worst storm of the season. Supposedly, the storm surge in the Cayman Islands was 33 feet, which probably destroyed a lot of sham corporations. As for Cuba, yeah, obliteration where it hit.
1933
Twenty-one storms formed in this season, which was a record until 2005. I'm going to pass over 18 of those storms to mention three significant US hurricanes. The eighth storm of the season was a significant hurricane in the Mid-Atlantic, the Chesapeake-Potomac hurricane. The storm made landfall on the Outer Banks, passed directly over Norfolk, and delivered a significant storm surge to communities on the Chesapeake Bay and up the Potomac (including to DC). Seventy years later Isabel took a similar track. Next, the twelfth storm, the strong Treasure Coast hurricane, which hit Florida around Jupiter as a cat-4. It destroyed homes and power lines and caused $2 million in damage, which I suppose was a lot for the time. Finally, the thirteenth storm, the Outer Banks hurricane, which isn't as significant as the previous storms: it recurved away from land after reaching North Carolina and eventually ended up in Nova Scotia. Between those areas its main effects were probably high waves.
1934
The most notable storm occurred in June and was mostly notable for an unusual track and major flooding damage. The storm spent an incredibly long time hanging around Belize and Honduras, and that caused the floods and the thousands of deaths. The hurricane later hit Louisiana but it didn't do that much damage there.
Only two storms formed in this season (presumably). The second one was non-trivial though, being one of the stronger hurricanes to hit the Dominican Republic, directly striking Santo Domingo. Anyway, insane damage there, but little damage in the other places it visited (Cuba, Puerto Rico, Florida). The hurricane is the fifth deadliest Atlantic hurricane ever (possibly) with a death toll between 2000 and 8000.
1931
After a parade of tropical storms the season was enlivened by the deadliest hurricane in Belize's history, which killed 2500 people. The storm struck Belize City, then the capital of the nation, on September 10, an important holiday in Belize (St. George's day). I'm guessing the pretty quick intensification also killed some people - the storm was only a TS 24 hours before landfall. The season is also notable for having a very straight hurricane.
1932
There isn't much information about it on Wikipedia but a Cat-4 struck Freeport this year, and Freeport's about the worst possible area for a hurricane to hit because then the greatest storm surge and winds are probably felt on Galveston. A Cat-5 struck the Bahamas, specifically a place called Abaco Island, causing the usual damage. It didn't really affect any other land areas. A Cat-3 struck Puerto Rico, crossing the island from east to west. The storm killed hundreds and extensively damaged the crops. I get the impression that this was one of the worst storms in Puerto Rico's history. As a bonus, the season concluded with a devastating Cat-4 that hit Cuba in November. This was probably the worst storm of the season. Supposedly, the storm surge in the Cayman Islands was 33 feet, which probably destroyed a lot of sham corporations. As for Cuba, yeah, obliteration where it hit.
1933
Twenty-one storms formed in this season, which was a record until 2005. I'm going to pass over 18 of those storms to mention three significant US hurricanes. The eighth storm of the season was a significant hurricane in the Mid-Atlantic, the Chesapeake-Potomac hurricane. The storm made landfall on the Outer Banks, passed directly over Norfolk, and delivered a significant storm surge to communities on the Chesapeake Bay and up the Potomac (including to DC). Seventy years later Isabel took a similar track. Next, the twelfth storm, the strong Treasure Coast hurricane, which hit Florida around Jupiter as a cat-4. It destroyed homes and power lines and caused $2 million in damage, which I suppose was a lot for the time. Finally, the thirteenth storm, the Outer Banks hurricane, which isn't as significant as the previous storms: it recurved away from land after reaching North Carolina and eventually ended up in Nova Scotia. Between those areas its main effects were probably high waves.
1934
The most notable storm occurred in June and was mostly notable for an unusual track and major flooding damage. The storm spent an incredibly long time hanging around Belize and Honduras, and that caused the floods and the thousands of deaths. The hurricane later hit Louisiana but it didn't do that much damage there.
Monday, July 26, 2010
1925-1929
1925
Only four storms? Season cancel. Anyway, one kinda cool storm: a minimal hurricane that made landfall in SW Florida. Lots of rain, lots of citrus damage. The hurricane also sank a few ships. The kicker is that it made landfall on November 30, the latest known landfalling hurricane in the US.
1926
Speaking of Florida...the season started quickly with an intense July hurricane that in particular fucked up Puerto Rico and the Bahamas. After that it made landfall on Florida's east coast, near Melbourne. It was the strongest recorded July hurricane until 2005. Rather more significant was the Miami hurricane. I mentioned the Florida land boom earlier; this hurricane ended the boom. The storm, unlike Andrew, passed directly over downtown Miami, causing tremendous amounts of damage. If this hurricane occurred today, it would likely be the costliest ever. The storm also swelled Lake Okechobee (foreshadowing) and damaged Mobile and Pensacola pretty good. The University of Miami sports teams are named for the storm. As a kind of bonus, a hurricane in October passed just offshore Miami and the Keys.
1927
Not much in this season. The worst storm was the first, a rare Canada hurricane - the extratropical remnants struck Nova Scotia. The storm destroyed a bunch of crops and fishing boats and apparently is considered to be one of the worst hurricanes to ever hit Canada.
1928
There was only one important storm this season, and it was one of the US's worst hurricanes ever, the Okeechobee hurricane. So what did it fuck up? Some islands that nobody cares about first - the worst hit was Guadeloupe, where 1000 people died. Next, it hit Puerto Rico as a Cat-5 storm. Several hundred died - only several hundred, because the people were effectively warned. (Hey, that's a pretty good death toll, considering that hurricane force winds lasted for up to 18 hours on the island.) Anyway yeah crazy amount of damage. This might have been Puerto Rico's worst hurricane ever. The storm then hit West Palm Beach in Florida, causing a fair amount of damage. Inland, the storm caused Lake Okeechobee to overflow its dikes. The massive floods and strong winds were a lethal combination, and many people living near the shore of the lake perished. The storm was the ninth deadliest Atlantic hurricane, and second deadliest hurricane in the USA.
The storm actually reminds me a lot of Katrina, partly because of the overflowing of the Okeechobee or New Orleans canals, partly because of the race thing. A lot of the folks who died in both hurricanes were black.
1929
Only three storms (presumably) formed this season. One hurricane struck (naturally) Florida - the southern tip, around where Andrew struck. Its strongest impacts were in the Bahamas. The storm then hit Florida as a cat-3, but did not do much damage. It did spawn several tornadoes and caused some flooding, but only three people died in the US.
Only four storms? Season cancel. Anyway, one kinda cool storm: a minimal hurricane that made landfall in SW Florida. Lots of rain, lots of citrus damage. The hurricane also sank a few ships. The kicker is that it made landfall on November 30, the latest known landfalling hurricane in the US.
1926
Speaking of Florida...the season started quickly with an intense July hurricane that in particular fucked up Puerto Rico and the Bahamas. After that it made landfall on Florida's east coast, near Melbourne. It was the strongest recorded July hurricane until 2005. Rather more significant was the Miami hurricane. I mentioned the Florida land boom earlier; this hurricane ended the boom. The storm, unlike Andrew, passed directly over downtown Miami, causing tremendous amounts of damage. If this hurricane occurred today, it would likely be the costliest ever. The storm also swelled Lake Okechobee (foreshadowing) and damaged Mobile and Pensacola pretty good. The University of Miami sports teams are named for the storm. As a kind of bonus, a hurricane in October passed just offshore Miami and the Keys.
1927
Not much in this season. The worst storm was the first, a rare Canada hurricane - the extratropical remnants struck Nova Scotia. The storm destroyed a bunch of crops and fishing boats and apparently is considered to be one of the worst hurricanes to ever hit Canada.
1928
There was only one important storm this season, and it was one of the US's worst hurricanes ever, the Okeechobee hurricane. So what did it fuck up? Some islands that nobody cares about first - the worst hit was Guadeloupe, where 1000 people died. Next, it hit Puerto Rico as a Cat-5 storm. Several hundred died - only several hundred, because the people were effectively warned. (Hey, that's a pretty good death toll, considering that hurricane force winds lasted for up to 18 hours on the island.) Anyway yeah crazy amount of damage. This might have been Puerto Rico's worst hurricane ever. The storm then hit West Palm Beach in Florida, causing a fair amount of damage. Inland, the storm caused Lake Okeechobee to overflow its dikes. The massive floods and strong winds were a lethal combination, and many people living near the shore of the lake perished. The storm was the ninth deadliest Atlantic hurricane, and second deadliest hurricane in the USA.
The storm actually reminds me a lot of Katrina, partly because of the overflowing of the Okeechobee or New Orleans canals, partly because of the race thing. A lot of the folks who died in both hurricanes were black.
1929
Only three storms (presumably) formed this season. One hurricane struck (naturally) Florida - the southern tip, around where Andrew struck. Its strongest impacts were in the Bahamas. The storm then hit Florida as a cat-3, but did not do much damage. It did spawn several tornadoes and caused some flooding, but only three people died in the US.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
1920-1924
1920
All storms in this season formed and died in September. None were particularly notable, though one did make landfall on the LA coast.
1921
Four hurricanes hit Florida in 2004, and the strongest at landfall was the first, Charley. It was initially forecast to hit Tampa and St. Petersburg, but turned instead to SW Florida, to Punta Gorda and Port Charlotte, devastating those cities. What if it had hit Tampa? Complete devastation would result, naturally. In 1921 it hit Tampa. This was apparently the last hurricane to directly hit Tampa, although I'm not sure about that. Anyway, it did plenty of damage, but not all that much, because Florida was pretty lightly populated then. In fact, it was undergoing quite a building boom in the 1920s, and the Tampa Bay hurricane was but a temporary interruption. (This is what writers call foreshadowing.)
1922
Nothing of note hit the US. This storm looks intriguingly damaging, though there is little information about it on Wikipedia. The closeness of the dots indicates it moved fairly slowly, thus causing extensive flood damage.
1923
Not much interesting this season. Although a storm can cross from the Atlantic to the Pacific, it seldom happens. Cesar 1996 is the most recent example. Crossing from the Pacific to the Atlantic is even rarer, and this storm is an example of that happening.
1924
It's tough to record if a storm is a Cat-5 hurricane, because the winds are so strong they break most (all?) anemometers and because the strongest winds occur over a small area. Anyway, 1924 had the first recorded Cat-5 in the Atlantic basin, although doubtless there were many before 1924. This storm struck Western Cuba with the force of a tornado. No shit. Except tornados are pretty small. Hurricanes completely surround you. Total destruction. The hurricane also hit SW Florida, although it was much less damaging there. The storm had the 10th lowest central pressure ever recorded, tied with Ivan (2004).
All storms in this season formed and died in September. None were particularly notable, though one did make landfall on the LA coast.
1921
Four hurricanes hit Florida in 2004, and the strongest at landfall was the first, Charley. It was initially forecast to hit Tampa and St. Petersburg, but turned instead to SW Florida, to Punta Gorda and Port Charlotte, devastating those cities. What if it had hit Tampa? Complete devastation would result, naturally. In 1921 it hit Tampa. This was apparently the last hurricane to directly hit Tampa, although I'm not sure about that. Anyway, it did plenty of damage, but not all that much, because Florida was pretty lightly populated then. In fact, it was undergoing quite a building boom in the 1920s, and the Tampa Bay hurricane was but a temporary interruption. (This is what writers call foreshadowing.)
1922
Nothing of note hit the US. This storm looks intriguingly damaging, though there is little information about it on Wikipedia. The closeness of the dots indicates it moved fairly slowly, thus causing extensive flood damage.
1923
Not much interesting this season. Although a storm can cross from the Atlantic to the Pacific, it seldom happens. Cesar 1996 is the most recent example. Crossing from the Pacific to the Atlantic is even rarer, and this storm is an example of that happening.
1924
It's tough to record if a storm is a Cat-5 hurricane, because the winds are so strong they break most (all?) anemometers and because the strongest winds occur over a small area. Anyway, 1924 had the first recorded Cat-5 in the Atlantic basin, although doubtless there were many before 1924. This storm struck Western Cuba with the force of a tornado. No shit. Except tornados are pretty small. Hurricanes completely surround you. Total destruction. The hurricane also hit SW Florida, although it was much less damaging there. The storm had the 10th lowest central pressure ever recorded, tied with Ivan (2004).
Saturday, July 24, 2010
1915-1919
1915
Back in 2005, for one brief moment in September it looked like Katrina wouldn't even be the most damaging storm of the season, when Rita reached cat-5 status and looked like it was aiming for a metro area far larger than New Orleans. What if Rita had hit? In 1915 it did.
There were two important storms in 1915. The first struck Galveston as a Cat-4 storm in mid August, causing the usual damage. It killed 11 people in Galveston and several hundred elsewhere in Texas. It flooded much of Galveston and destroyed many crops inland. If the storm struck today it would make Ike look like nothing. The other important storm struck New Orleans in late September. Unlike Katrina, which made its final landfall in Mississippi, this storm hit New Orleans dead-on from the south. There was some flood damage, not as bad as Katrina though. (I'm not sure areas like the Lower 9th Ward existed in 1915) The hurricane was more damaging to areas of southern Louisiana south of New Orleans, areas that are now eroding and thus denying protection to New Orleans whenever the next storm sweeps in from the south. If either of these storms hit today, they would almost certainly do more damage than Andrew, and possibly as much as Katrina.
1916
This season was pretty active. The first important storm of the season struck the Mississippi coast at Cat-3 strength, around where Katrina did 89 years later. Unusually for a major hurricane, it struck in early July. Another hurricane struck Texas this year as a cat 4 near Corpus. Wikipedia's article on the storm doesn't mention all that much damage, but who knows. It might have done very little damage like Bret (1999) or a lot of damage like Celia (1970). Any Cat-4 that strikes the US is pretty significant though. There have only been three such storms in my lifetime.
1917
Only one particularly destructive storm formed in this season. It moved through Jamaica, western Cuba, and northwest Florida (around Pensacola), damaging crops and structures as it went. The most severe damage probably occurred in western Cuba and the Isle of Youth, where it made landfall as a cat-4 storm.
1918
Only one major hurricane, and there's not much information about it on Wikipedia. It struck about where Hurricane Rita did, and at about the same intensity, Cat-3.
1919
This season featured a particularly intense hurricane that struck the Florida Keys and Corpus. It was the sixth most intense landfalling hurricane in the US - intensity measured by central pressure. (I'm referring to its landfall in the Keys) It was also the sixth deadliest hurricane in the US. Most of those people died at sea, but some died in Corpus - the hurricane was not forecast to make landfall in the area. My guess is this was probably the storm of record for Corpus before Celia.
The 1919 storm is also noteworthy for prompting the construction of the Key West hurricane grotto, built at a Catholic church on the island. Since the grotto was built, no one has died from a hurricane on Key West. At least that's what Jeff Masters says. If he's right - wow. The 1919 storm was very bad indeed, but it wasn't the worst for the Keys. The worst is yet to come.
Back in 2005, for one brief moment in September it looked like Katrina wouldn't even be the most damaging storm of the season, when Rita reached cat-5 status and looked like it was aiming for a metro area far larger than New Orleans. What if Rita had hit? In 1915 it did.
There were two important storms in 1915. The first struck Galveston as a Cat-4 storm in mid August, causing the usual damage. It killed 11 people in Galveston and several hundred elsewhere in Texas. It flooded much of Galveston and destroyed many crops inland. If the storm struck today it would make Ike look like nothing. The other important storm struck New Orleans in late September. Unlike Katrina, which made its final landfall in Mississippi, this storm hit New Orleans dead-on from the south. There was some flood damage, not as bad as Katrina though. (I'm not sure areas like the Lower 9th Ward existed in 1915) The hurricane was more damaging to areas of southern Louisiana south of New Orleans, areas that are now eroding and thus denying protection to New Orleans whenever the next storm sweeps in from the south. If either of these storms hit today, they would almost certainly do more damage than Andrew, and possibly as much as Katrina.
1916
This season was pretty active. The first important storm of the season struck the Mississippi coast at Cat-3 strength, around where Katrina did 89 years later. Unusually for a major hurricane, it struck in early July. Another hurricane struck Texas this year as a cat 4 near Corpus. Wikipedia's article on the storm doesn't mention all that much damage, but who knows. It might have done very little damage like Bret (1999) or a lot of damage like Celia (1970). Any Cat-4 that strikes the US is pretty significant though. There have only been three such storms in my lifetime.
1917
Only one particularly destructive storm formed in this season. It moved through Jamaica, western Cuba, and northwest Florida (around Pensacola), damaging crops and structures as it went. The most severe damage probably occurred in western Cuba and the Isle of Youth, where it made landfall as a cat-4 storm.
1918
Only one major hurricane, and there's not much information about it on Wikipedia. It struck about where Hurricane Rita did, and at about the same intensity, Cat-3.
1919
This season featured a particularly intense hurricane that struck the Florida Keys and Corpus. It was the sixth most intense landfalling hurricane in the US - intensity measured by central pressure. (I'm referring to its landfall in the Keys) It was also the sixth deadliest hurricane in the US. Most of those people died at sea, but some died in Corpus - the hurricane was not forecast to make landfall in the area. My guess is this was probably the storm of record for Corpus before Celia.
The 1919 storm is also noteworthy for prompting the construction of the Key West hurricane grotto, built at a Catholic church on the island. Since the grotto was built, no one has died from a hurricane on Key West. At least that's what Jeff Masters says. If he's right - wow. The 1919 storm was very bad indeed, but it wasn't the worst for the Keys. The worst is yet to come.
Friday, July 23, 2010
1910-1914
1910
This season only had five cyclones recorded, but the last one was important. The storm looped off Cuba as a major hurricane, causing the requisite torrential rainfall and material damage. It killed at least 100 people. Later it hit southwest Florida before moving to the northeast and lightly impacting the southeast coast of the US.
1911
Another pretty inactive season. Probably the most interesting hurricane impacted Savannah - because of the shape of the coastline, hurricanes rarely make landfall from the east between the Kennedy space center and Charleston. There was the usual damage.
1912
Not much happened in this season. The final storm was a rare November major hurricane (Cat 3). Like most November major hurricanes, it formed in the Caribbean - it impacted Jamaica with heavy rainfall due to its reversing direction after making landfall in the manner of TS Allison. Seconds, anyone?
1913
Probably the most damaging hurricane of the season caused 20 inches of rain in south Texas. Other than that not much else happened in the season. There were a couple of other lightly-damaging hurricanes.
1914
The least active Atlantic hurricane season on record, with only one tropical storm (and no hurricanes) forming. The hurricane seasons of the early 20th century were generally pretty inactive, although there are some exceptions. Hurricane seasons in midcentury definitely produced more big storms. The only tropical storm of the season struck around Jacksonville.
The 1915 season produced two immensely damaging storms, but they must wait till tomorrow.
This season only had five cyclones recorded, but the last one was important. The storm looped off Cuba as a major hurricane, causing the requisite torrential rainfall and material damage. It killed at least 100 people. Later it hit southwest Florida before moving to the northeast and lightly impacting the southeast coast of the US.
1911
Another pretty inactive season. Probably the most interesting hurricane impacted Savannah - because of the shape of the coastline, hurricanes rarely make landfall from the east between the Kennedy space center and Charleston. There was the usual damage.
1912
Not much happened in this season. The final storm was a rare November major hurricane (Cat 3). Like most November major hurricanes, it formed in the Caribbean - it impacted Jamaica with heavy rainfall due to its reversing direction after making landfall in the manner of TS Allison. Seconds, anyone?
1913
Probably the most damaging hurricane of the season caused 20 inches of rain in south Texas. Other than that not much else happened in the season. There were a couple of other lightly-damaging hurricanes.
1914
The least active Atlantic hurricane season on record, with only one tropical storm (and no hurricanes) forming. The hurricane seasons of the early 20th century were generally pretty inactive, although there are some exceptions. Hurricane seasons in midcentury definitely produced more big storms. The only tropical storm of the season struck around Jacksonville.
The 1915 season produced two immensely damaging storms, but they must wait till tomorrow.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
What
Because I have been told to update. Anyway, I've been looking at hurricane tracks again, and now I wish to start a multi-part series on hurricanes that interest me, starting with the year 1900 and going until the present. Today, 1900-1904.
1900
There may have been other storms, but only one matters.
1901
Not many interesting storms year. This storm is probably the most interesting, because of its southward motion off the NC coast.
1902
Only five storms, so definitely a boring season. One storm hit Texas on an unusual coast-hugging track - generally storms hit Texas more perpendicularly to the coastline.
1903
This season actually has a pretty memorable storm, the so called Vagabond hurricane, which made its only landfall at Atlantic City. No hurricane has directly hit New Jersey since then, although plenty of storms have impacted New Jersey more indirectly. Usually, East Coast hurricanes hit North Carolina and move northeast, passing over the mid-Atlantic states, or they hit Long Island and New England.
1904
Nothing interesting in this season, but I always appreciate a looping hurricane. That storm would probably be a major flood event for SW Florida today.
(edit) In honor of TS Bonnie's recent formation I am inspired to go further. I'll use the Wikipedia tracks instead of the Unisys tracks in this edit, because I feel like it. Also Wikipedia provides more information about the storms, like death tolls.
1905
Little of note formed in this season: four tropical storms and one hurricane. The hurricane did bring TS-force winds to Bermuda.
1906
This season was definitely busier. One storm killed 132+ people as it hit the Gulf Coast around Mobile and Pensacola. Another storm caused flooding in Nicaragua and heavy damage in the Florida Keys, an area we will definitely be revisiting. (Foreshadowing alert.) Also, its path is one of the strangest I've seen. Hurricanes aren't supposed to move southwest like that. Kinda reminds me of Gordon (1994) a bit.
1907
No hurricanes formed during this season, and only five tropical storms formed. None had particularly interesting tracks, although two managed to hit about the same spot in Florida. Even Wikipedia doesn't have anything interesting to say about any storm in this season.
1908
1908 had a couple weird storms. One storm formed in March. I cannot think of any other storm that formed in the Atlantic in March. Although the map has no arrows, it moved in the southwest direction. Another hurricane formed in May - it's pretty rare for any storm to form in May, although it does happen sometimes. Here is the strongest storm of the season, which probably caused heavy damage in the Bahamas.
1909
This season had several severe storms. One storm hit south Texas with about the same intensity as Dolly (2008) and Alex (2010), two other storms that also hit the border region recently. But who cares about South Texas! Houston is much more important, and a cat-3 storm hit Freeport that year. This storm would cause a major fuss today. Another hurricane killed 4,000 or so people in Monterrey after its heavy rains destroyed a nearby dam. And the final hurricane I will mention struck Louisiana and fucked up the coastline around there pretty bad. This storm would cause a huge media freakout today - and it's no Gustav, either, it was apparently a very large storm. It flooded (a much less populated) New Orleans in true Katrina fashion, and there have been a hundred years of wetland degradation since then. 1909 was a mean year for tropical cyclones in the Atlantic. The only year meaner in this decade was 1900. And I'm even passing over some of the cyclones in 1909: another major hurricane hit Havana and the Keys, and the final hurricane of the season hit Jamaica and Haiti.
I am moved to comment about the pre-satellite era. In a lot of these years it is possible that some storms, the ones far out to sea, were simply not detected. Some storms just never hit land or even come close, but they can still be very powerful, like Bill (2009). Also, wind measurements can be tough, since hurricane force winds destroy most anemometers. On land tree damage (and structural damage) can serve as a proxy, but there ain't many trees on the sea surface.
I'll start on the 1910s tomorrow.
1900
There may have been other storms, but only one matters.
1901
Not many interesting storms year. This storm is probably the most interesting, because of its southward motion off the NC coast.
1902
Only five storms, so definitely a boring season. One storm hit Texas on an unusual coast-hugging track - generally storms hit Texas more perpendicularly to the coastline.
1903
This season actually has a pretty memorable storm, the so called Vagabond hurricane, which made its only landfall at Atlantic City. No hurricane has directly hit New Jersey since then, although plenty of storms have impacted New Jersey more indirectly. Usually, East Coast hurricanes hit North Carolina and move northeast, passing over the mid-Atlantic states, or they hit Long Island and New England.
1904
Nothing interesting in this season, but I always appreciate a looping hurricane. That storm would probably be a major flood event for SW Florida today.
(edit) In honor of TS Bonnie's recent formation I am inspired to go further. I'll use the Wikipedia tracks instead of the Unisys tracks in this edit, because I feel like it. Also Wikipedia provides more information about the storms, like death tolls.
1905
Little of note formed in this season: four tropical storms and one hurricane. The hurricane did bring TS-force winds to Bermuda.
1906
This season was definitely busier. One storm killed 132+ people as it hit the Gulf Coast around Mobile and Pensacola. Another storm caused flooding in Nicaragua and heavy damage in the Florida Keys, an area we will definitely be revisiting. (Foreshadowing alert.) Also, its path is one of the strangest I've seen. Hurricanes aren't supposed to move southwest like that. Kinda reminds me of Gordon (1994) a bit.
1907
No hurricanes formed during this season, and only five tropical storms formed. None had particularly interesting tracks, although two managed to hit about the same spot in Florida. Even Wikipedia doesn't have anything interesting to say about any storm in this season.
1908
1908 had a couple weird storms. One storm formed in March. I cannot think of any other storm that formed in the Atlantic in March. Although the map has no arrows, it moved in the southwest direction. Another hurricane formed in May - it's pretty rare for any storm to form in May, although it does happen sometimes. Here is the strongest storm of the season, which probably caused heavy damage in the Bahamas.
1909
This season had several severe storms. One storm hit south Texas with about the same intensity as Dolly (2008) and Alex (2010), two other storms that also hit the border region recently. But who cares about South Texas! Houston is much more important, and a cat-3 storm hit Freeport that year. This storm would cause a major fuss today. Another hurricane killed 4,000 or so people in Monterrey after its heavy rains destroyed a nearby dam. And the final hurricane I will mention struck Louisiana and fucked up the coastline around there pretty bad. This storm would cause a huge media freakout today - and it's no Gustav, either, it was apparently a very large storm. It flooded (a much less populated) New Orleans in true Katrina fashion, and there have been a hundred years of wetland degradation since then. 1909 was a mean year for tropical cyclones in the Atlantic. The only year meaner in this decade was 1900. And I'm even passing over some of the cyclones in 1909: another major hurricane hit Havana and the Keys, and the final hurricane of the season hit Jamaica and Haiti.
I am moved to comment about the pre-satellite era. In a lot of these years it is possible that some storms, the ones far out to sea, were simply not detected. Some storms just never hit land or even come close, but they can still be very powerful, like Bill (2009). Also, wind measurements can be tough, since hurricane force winds destroy most anemometers. On land tree damage (and structural damage) can serve as a proxy, but there ain't many trees on the sea surface.
I'll start on the 1910s tomorrow.
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