Today marks the first day of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, and intense storm activity is on the way. In May, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted the highest number of named storms ever in its seasonal forecast.
Looking into the hurricane history in your area can provide a fascinating glimpse into past storm activity. As we approach these conditions for a new season, take a look back at how many hurricanes and tropical storms have passed through your area since 1851.
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Hurricane paths rarely reach the Midwest, but remnants of storms such as Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and Tropical Storm Claudette in 1979 have come within 10 miles of cities such as Columbus, Ohio, and St. Louis, Missouri.
Other areas, such as the storm-prone Florida Panhandle and Outer Banks, have seen dozens, and in some cases more than 100, hurricanes in the past 150 years. In fact, Florida alone has seen 40% of the hurricanes in the United States, according to NOAA’s Atlantic Marine and Meteorological Laboratory.
How many hurricanes have there been in total?
NOAA reports that more than 300 hurricanes have traveled up the coastline and struck the continental U.S. since 1851. That averages out to about 18 hurricanes per decade.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the deadliest hurricane in U.S. history was the Galveston Hurricane of 1900, which killed approximately 8,000 to 12,000 people.
Hurricane Katrina is the deadliest hurricane in the past century, killing at least 1,500 people, and it also remains the costliest hurricane on record, causing nearly $200 billion in damages, adjusted for inflation, according to NOAA.
more:The nation’s top hurricane forecaster issues five warnings at the start of a dangerous hurricane season
Why do hurricanes start in June?
Hurricanes need to be warm enough to form, and they usually form in the Atlantic Ocean during the summer and fall.
Hurricane season officially begins in June, but the first storms can form much earlier. In fact, according to NOAA, the earliest observed Atlantic hurricane was an unnamed storm that formed on March 7, 1908, arriving several months before the official start of the season.
According to NOAA data, the peak of the Atlantic hurricane season is in September, with most hurricane activity and landfall occurring between mid-August and mid-October. Hurricanes making landfall in June are rare, but tropical storms can still have an impact.
