2024 Atlantic Hurricane Season

Tropical Storm Sara brought heavy rains to Honduras, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala and Belize before heading toward Mexico. As of Nov. 17, it had weakened to a tropical depression and was expected to bring tropical rains to the Gulf Coast, including Tampa Bay, which was hit by multiple hurricanes this season.  

In Honduras, the storm stalled over the country, and authorities reported that up to 40 inches of rain fell. In other countries, 5 to 20 inches of rain fell, leading to flash flooding and landslides. Sara is the 18^th named storm of the 2024 hurricane season.  

Rafael landed in western Cuba as a major hurricane on Nov. 6, making it the first major Gulf hurricane in almost 40 years. Like Oscar (listed below), Rafael left 10 million people in the dark as Cuba’s electrical system collapsed due to the storm.  

Rafael caused flooding in South Carolina and Georgia, 500 miles from the eye of the storm. On Nov. 6 and Nov. 7, parts of South Carolina received 12 inches of rainfall in less than 24 hours, causing extensive flooding.  

At around 5 a.m. EDT, Oscar made landfall on Great Inagua Island in the Bahamas. Nearly 13 hours later, at 5:50 p.m. EDT, Hurricane Oscar made landfall near Baracoa in the Cuban province of Guantanamo, bringing heavy rain and intense winds to eastern Cuba and a few inches of rain to the Bahamas. Cuba has been struggling with ongoing power outages over the last few months, and Oscar arrived with 10 million people already in the dark. At least six people were killed, and more than 1,000 homes were damaged.  

According to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, “The devastation caused by Hurricane Oscar poses a serious threat to long-term recovery, especially in key sectors like agriculture and energy. The widespread damage to critical infrastructure underscores the need for an urgent and comprehensive emergency response.” 

Nadine made landfall as a tropical storm on Oct. 19, at 11:00 a.m. CDT, near Belize City, Belize, with sustained winds of 55 mph.

The storm brought heavy rain to Belize, Guatemala and parts of Mexico before dissipating on Oct. 20. At least three people in Mexico were killed due to floods and landslides, and 1,200 homes in Chiapas were damaged by floods.  

Hurricane Milton grew from a tropical storm on Oct. 6 to a Category 5 storm 24 hours later, becoming the fifth-strongest Atlantic hurricane. Milton reached rare wind speeds of 180 mph, strikingly low barometric pressure and an extremely small eye, known as a ‘pinhole’. Milton made landfall in Florida near Siesta Key on Oct. 9 and was classified as a post-tropical cyclone by 5 p.m. EDT on Oct. 10 off the East Coast of Florida.  

In addition to the hurricane winds, St. Petersburg experienced a one-in-1000-year event with nearly 19 inches of rain.  

While Florida sees an average of 50 tornadoes yearly, there were reports of almost 40 tornadoes before and during Milton’s landfall, and 126 warnings were issued, the highest number Florida has ever issued in one day. In Fort Pierce, six deaths were reported at the Spanish Lakes Country Club Village, a retirement community comprised of modular homes that flipped over from the winds. Milton was not expected to significantly affect this area, so the state did not issue evacuation orders. An EF-3 tornado hit Palm Beach Gardens on Florida’s eastern shore. 

As of Oct. 16, there were 25 confirmed direct and indirect deaths, some from the tornadoes, across 12 counties.  

“AccuWeather preliminarily estimates the total damage and economic loss from historic Hurricane Milton will be between $160 billion and $180 billion. Milton will go down as one of the most damaging and impactful storms in Florida history.”

Hurricane Helene made landfall on Sept. 26 near Perry, Florida, as a Category 4 storm and tied as the 14^th most powerful hurricane to hit the U.S. since records began. The storm carved a 500-mile path of destruction, bringing severe winds, heavy rain, surges of 15-20 feet and mass flooding.

Helene has been called North Carolina’s “own Hurricane Katrina.” About 40 trillion gallons of rain fell, half of that in North Carolina, which saw 29 inches of rain. Many areas affected by flooding are not considered flood zones, and homeowners there were less likely to have purchased insurance from the National Flood Insurance Program.

Helene caused 220 deaths, the third-highest number of fatalities from a hurricane in the U.S. since 2000.  

Accuweather has estimated the damage and economic loss of Helene to be $225-250 billion in total.  

Tropical Storm Francine formed off the coast of Mexico and made landfall as a Category 2 hurricane in Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana, on Sept. 11. The storm brought heavy winds and torrential rains and caused severe flooding in several areas.

Significant damage was reported in the coastal areas and further inland, like New Orleans. Many communities hit by Hurricane Francine were still recovering from Hurricane Ida in 2021. Businesses and homes that were being repaired or rebuilt experienced additional damages, highlighting the need for community-wide mitigation measures.   

Tropical Storm Ernesto first hit the British Virgin Islands with extreme rain and strong winds on Aug. 10. The storm then moved to Puerto Rico, where it knocked out half of the island’s power on Aug. 11.

At the storm’s peak, 730,000 customers in Puerto Rico were without power, and 200,000 homes and businesses were without water. Flooding and landslides were reported in several locations. Ernesto caused about $150 million in damages.  

Tropical Storm Debby became a Category 1 hurricane overnight on Aug. 14 and made landfall in the Big Bend region of Florida at 7 a.m. EST on Aug. 5, with winds of 80 mph. About 350,000 people lost power in Florida due to the storm. 

Debby drenched Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina. Greenpond, South Carolina, reported 14 inches of rainfall, surpassing monthly averages for August in just one day.  

The system moved slowly up the U.S., bringing tornadoes and flooding to Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, New York, New Hampshire and Vermont before moving into Canada.  

Tropical Storm Chris was a short-lived system in the southwestern Gulf of Mexico that formed as a tropical depression on June 30 in Veracruz, Mexico. It became a tropical storm that evening and dissipated the next morning. The storm caused five deaths, damaged 2,000 homes and affected over 20,000 people.  

As the earliest Category 5 storm on record in the Atlantic, Beryl became a tropical storm on June 28 before rapidly intensifying into a Category 5 on July 1. The storm affected multiple countries, including Venezuela, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Jamaica, Mexico, the U.S., and Canada. This AP photo essay depicts some of the damage. 

As Beryl passed through the Caribbean islands of Grenada it caused extensive damage. Most of the businesses and homes on the islands of Carriacou (population 6,000) and Petite Martinique (population 900) were destroyed. In addition, the islands have lost hospitals, marinas (and boats), airports and almost all vegetation, including protective mangrove swamps.  

Beryl passed Jamaica’s southern coast on July 4 as a Category 3 storm, leaving significant transportation, electrical and telecommunications infrastructure damage.

Weather.com reported that: “Hurricane Beryl produced more tornadoes in the U.S. than any other tropical system has in almost 19 years, from Texas to upstate New York.”  

At least 44 people died in the U.S., South America and across the Caribbean, including one in Louisiana, two in Jamaica, two in St Vincent, three in both Venezuela and Grenada, and 36 in Texas.  

The first named storm of the season, Tropical Storm Alberto, made landfall on June 20. It brought heavy rainfall (up to 10.5 inches in Lamar, near Rockport) and flooding to the Gulf Coast regions of Mexico and Texas. Governor Greg Abbott declared a disaster for 51 Texas counties.  

Mexico experienced flooding and mudslides in the Northeast. In Nuevo Leon, Mexico, four deaths were reported, three of whom were youths aged 12 to 16

A “fish storm” is a tropical system that does not make landfall and causes no damage. They can range in intensity from tropical depressions to major hurricanes. A number of storms this year qualified as fish storms, including Hurricane Patty, Hurricane Leslie, Hurricane Kirk, Tropical Storm Joyce, Hurricane Isaac and Tropical Storm Gordon.