Remembering an early June Hurricane

Hurricane Allison on June 4, 1995  (Source: NOAA)

Although hurricane season began June 1 and continues through November 30, June and November are the two quietest months of the season.  That’s largely because atmospheric conditions and sea surface temperatures are generally unfavorable for widespread development in the tropics.  When tropical storms and hurricanes do form in June, the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea are where they typically develop since the water there warms up more quickly.  Tropical storms and hurricanes require ocean temperatures of at least 80 degrees to develop and intensify.

However, 1995 was one of the busiest hurricane seasons on record with 19 named tropical storms.  Of the 19 tropical storms that developed, 11 intensified into hurricanes according to the National Hurricane Center.  The first named storm of the very active 1995 season was Allison.  Allison was named a tropical storm (with maximum sustained winds of at least 39 mph) on June 3 while moving north from the western Caribbean Sea into the southeastern Gulf of Mexico.  Due to favorable conditions, Allison continued to intensify and became a minimal hurricane (with maximum sustained winds around its center of 75 mph) on this date 20 years ago. 

Hurricane Allison weakened slightly before making landfall in the Florida panhandle on June 5, 1995.  Although a relatively weak and fast moving storm, Hurricane Allison caused an estimated $1.7 million in damage.  According to the National Hurricane Center, Hurricane Allison was the earliest hurricane to form in the Atlantic Ocean since Bonnie became a Category 1 hurricane on June 25, 1986.  The most intense June hurricane on record remains Audrey in 1957. 

However, Hurricane Allison was overshadowed by the tropical storm of the same name that formed in 2001.  In 2001, Tropical Storm “Allison” also developed in June and brought Texas catastrophic flooding as more than 36” of rain fell in Houston with dozens of fatalities.  Allison remains the costliest tropical storm on record in U.S. history having caused more than $5 billion worth of damage in June 2001.  Allison also remains the only tropical storm to have its named retired by the World Meteorological Organization for being destructive and deadly.  The name “Andrea” replaced “Allison” in 2007.

Although the first named storm (Ana) of 2015 has already formed, NOAA is expecting a near or below average hurricane season in the Atlantic Ocean this year.