Weather Quiz

Hurricane Beryl at Category 5 strength, July 2024 (Source: NOAA)

When was the last time the Atlantic Ocean had an entire hurricane season without a Category 5 hurricane?

A. 2021

B. 2015

C. 2008

D. 2003

What Category 5 hurricanes have menaced the United States?

 

Hurricane Andrew making landfall (Source: NOAA)

Category 5 storms are relatively rare. They make up a very small percentage of the total number of hurricanes that form annually. In fact, only four have ever made landfall in the United States. Here’s a closer look at the “Big Four.”

Michael (2018): Hurricane Michael was only the fourth Category 5 storm to make landfall in the United States and first since Hurricane Andrew in 1992. Michael reached peak intensity as it made landfall along the Florida panhandle on October 10 with sustained winds of 160 mph and a minimum central air pressure of 919 millibars (mb). By comparison, standard sea level air pressure is 1013.25 mb. That part of Florida had seen several previous Category 3 hurricanes make landfall, but never a Category 4 or 5 storm. Michael caused $31.2 billion in U.S. damages (2024 dollars) and claimed 16 lives during the storm, according to NOAA.

Andrew (1992): Andrew intensified into a Category 5 hurricane with peak sustained winds of 175 mph when it passed through the Bahamas. Andrew had sustained winds of 165 mph and a minimum central pressure of 922 mb when it came ashore in Florida on August 24, 1992. It was the first major hurricane (Category 3 or higher on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale) to make landfall in the state of Florida since Eloise in 1975. 

Hurricane Andrew became the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history at the time with $26.5 billion in damages. Adjusted for inflation, that damage total would be $60.5 billion in 2024. As bad as Andrew was, the damage could have been worse had the track been a little different.  Since Andrew was a relatively compact hurricane, its strongest winds were concentrated in a limited area compared to other hurricanes that had a larger diameter (like Katrina). Andrew’s eye traveled roughly 30 miles south of downtown Miami, which largely spared the city.

Camille (1969): Like Andrew in 1992, Camille was the first major hurricane of the season. Camille made landfall on August 18 in Mississippi at peak Category 5 intensity with sustained winds of 175 mph and a minimum central air pressure of 900 mb. Camille was both destructive and deadly, having caused $12.2 billion in damages (2024 dollars) with over 200 fatalities.  

1935 Labor Day: At peak intensity, this hurricane was a monster with sustained winds of 185 mph and a minimum central air pressure of 892 mb. It made landfall at peak intensity near Long Key in the Florida Keys where it was both destructive and deadly. The storm made a second landfall near Cedar Key, Florida, as a much weaker storm. It remains the strongest of the four Category 5 hurricanes that have made landfall in the United States.

A closer look at August severe weather

 

August 7, 2023 severe weather reports (Source: NOAA)

Although severe weather is less common across DC, Maryland and Virginia (DMV) in August than during the spring or early summer, it is still a threat. The key difference between August severe weather outbreaks compared to earlier in the year is that weakening tropical systems can bring damaging winds and tornadoes to the DMV.

“Severe weather” is a thunderstorm that contains one or more of the following: hail 1” in diameter or greater; wind gusts of at least 58 mph; or a tornado. These are a few recent cases of severe weather in August.

2023: A massive two-day severe weather outbreak occurred from Illinois to New York on August 6 – 7. Two fatalities were reported on August 6 when gusty winds during a thunderstorm caused a tree to fall on a vehicle in Chickasaw County, Mississippi and killed its occupants. Severe weather reports were even more numerous on August 7, when damaging winds and large hail were widespread. Hail as large as 4” in diameter was observed in Washington County, Maryland.

2022: A severe weather outbreak occurred on August 4, with a slew of wind damage reports. A waterspout over the lower Chesapeake Bay also moved ashore in Somerset County, Maryland, as a tornado. Sadly, four people were struck by lightning as they visited Lafayette Park across from the White House, resulting in three fatalities.

2020: The remnants of Hurricane Isaias brought record rainfall and severe weather to the Mid-Atlantic Region. Multiple tornadoes occurred across Maryland, Virginia and the Eastern Shore. That’s in addition to an August 4 rainfall record of 2.48” at National Airport. Although several injuries were reported during the severe weather, no fatalities occurred in the DMV.

2018: A severe weather outbreak on August 21 brought reports of wind damage across parts of Maryland and Virginia. National Airport had a daily rainfall record of 2.46”. Significantly, it was one of 24 days in 2018 that an inch or more of rain fell in the nation’s capital. Washington, D.C. had its wettest year on record in 2018 with 66.28”

2010: There was a severe weather outbreak on August 12 with multiple damaging wind and hail reports. An EF-0 tornado was confirmed in Frederick County, Maryland with estimated peak winds of 80 mph. Meanwhile, damaging but non-tornadic wind damage occurred in parts of Montgomery County, Maryland and Stafford County, Virginia.