The fast winds, rapid rainfall, and huge storm surges of hurricanes make this natural disaster responsible for hundreds of deaths and billions of dollars in damages each year. Hurricanes have wreaked more havoc than any other type of natural disaster in the United States, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. They’ve caused more than $1.3 trillion in damage since 1980, averaging $22.8 billion per hurricane. Hurricanes have also resulted in the highest number of deaths in the United States—6,890 Americans have lost their lives in hurricanes between 1980 and 2023.

Tragically, these numbers increased even further in the 2024 hurricane season. By year’s end, tropical cyclones (or hurricanes) caused more than $1.5 trillion in total damages , with an average cost of $23 billion per event. Although hurricane activity dwindled unexpectedly in the middle of the season, the latter half saw Hurricanes Helene and Milton cause deadly flooding, high winds, and power outages across the southeastern U.S.

As the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season kicks off in June, experts at The Weather Company and Atmospheric G2 predict slightly fewer big storms this year. However, with 19 storms expected (nine of which may become hurricanes and four of which could become Category 3 or higher), residents of hurricane-prone areas should remain prepared.

To do so, it’s worth learning a little more about these extreme weather events. Hurricanes are large, wet storms with high winds that form over warm water . On average, about 10 tropical storms develop each year, and six reach the strength of hurricanes , according to NOAA. Hurricane season in the Atlantic basin—the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico (recently renamed the Gulf of America by President Donald Trump in a 2025 executive order recognized only within the U.S.), and the Caribbean Sea—runs from June 1 through November; however, some hurricanes do form outside of this season.

Hurricanes are rated using the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale . Category 1 hurricanes have the lowest wind speeds, at 74-95 miles per hour, and Category 5 hurricanes have the strongest winds, at 157 miles per hour or faster. Storms that are Category 3 and above (reaching at least 111 miles per hour) are considered major hurricanes.

Stronger hurricanes can trigger flash floods, mudslides, and tornadoes, but even weaker ones can cause extensive destruction to property, infrastructure, and crops. Some hurricanes remain at sea and never make landfall, limiting their destruction. Advancements in technology, particularly satellite imaging, have greatly improved warnings and advisories that prompted lifesaving evacuations.

With the 2025 hurricane season underway, Stacker obtained hurricane data, updated in 2024, from NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory , which dates back to 1925. A list of notable events from each year was compiled from news, scientific, and government reports. (Since hurricanes were not given official names until 1950, some storms through 1949 are referred to as “recorded storms” as opposed to “named storms.”)

Read on to learn about the noteworthy tropical storms and hurricanes from the year you were born.

1924: The first Category 5 on record

Hurricane records date back to 1842, and 1924 was a first for the record books: An unnamed Category 5 hurricane struck Cuba, becoming the first Category 5 hurricane ever recorded.

1925: A late-season hurricane strikes Florida

The 1925 hurricane season was relatively quiet, but it still made history. On Dec. 1, a hurricane made landfall in Florida, one of the latest hurricanes to hit the U.S. on record.

1926: A deadly hurricane hits Miami

The 1926 hurricane season is remembered for one of the deadliest storms in U.S. history . A Category 4 hurricane hit South Florida in September, killing about 250 people and leaving 25,000 residents homeless . According to PBS, the September hurricane , known as the Great Miami Hurricane, was the country’s greatest natural disaster in two decades, since the deadly earthquake and fire that hit San Francisco in 1906. Today, the storm is still considered among the strongest, deadliest, and most costly in the country’s history.

1927: New England gets flooded

No hurricanes struck the U.S. in 1927. However, that doesn’t mean the country didn’t feel the effects of those Atlantic basin storms anyway. In early November, a hurricane moved up the Atlantic coast , leading to disastrous rainfall in New England, with some parts of Vermont receiving as much as 15 inches of rain, resulting in widespread flooding.

1928: Another deadly hurricane in southern Florida

Just two years after the Great Miami Hurricane sounded the alarm to southern Floridians about the area being storm-prone, the Okeechobee Hurricane of 1928 struck, cementing that fact. The hurricane made landfall in Palm Beach County on Sept. 16, killing around 2,500 , many of whom were migrant workers, and leaving 800,000 homeless . Before landing in Florida, the hurricane also hit Puerto Rico on Sept. 13, the feast day of Saint Philip. It was the second hurricane to strike Puerto Rico on that day of celebration.

1929: A slow-moving hurricane slams the Bahamas

The Great Bahamas Hurricane, also known as the Great Andros Island Hurricane, barely moved over the course of three days in September, hovering above Nassau and Andros in the Bahamas. The storm killed 134 people , with mariners and anglers making up a large majority of the fatalities.

1930: A hurricane demolishes the Dominican Republic

Though 1930 was a quiet hurricane season overall, it also saw one of the Atlantic Ocean’s deadliest hurricanes . The Dominican Republic Hurricane, also known as the San Zenón Hurricane, was a Category 4 storm that killed up to 8,000 people in the Dominican Republic.

1931: Belize’s deadliest hurricane

In September 1931, a hurricane hit Belize, then known as British Honduras, and killed about 2,500 people. The colony’s capital, Belize City, was submerged in about five feet of water, leaving nearly 70% of the city destroyed. As of August 2024, it is the deadliest hurricane to hit Belize in recorded history.

1932: Category 4 hurricane strikes Cuba

The Huracán de Santa Cruz del Sur, a Category 4 storm, hit Cuba in November 1932 and caused 3,500 fatalities. Most of the deaths were due to a storm surge, a flash flood that rose to over 20 feet. The damage in the town of Santa Cruz del Sur was particularly catastrophic, hence the hurricane’s unofficial name. According to the Associated Press, less than 10% of the town’s residents were able to flee unscathed.

1933: A record hurricane season in the Caribbean

The 1933 hurricane season was one of the most active in Atlantic basin history. Of the 11 hurricanes that season, eight were tracked through the Caribbean alone, which is the most ever recorded in that area, as of 2021.

1934: Hurricane ‘hunting’ improves

Unlike the year that preceded it, the 1934 hurricane season was much less destructive, which was both a natural development and a technological one. The United States Weather Bureau’s improved system for “hunting” hurricanes involved calling ships for weather updates, which allowed earlier warnings to residents to escape potential threats.

1935: Category 5 Labor Day Hurricane

At the time of its landfall, the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane was one of the strongest storms to touch down in the U.S. It was also the country’s first Category 5 hurricane ever. More than 400 people died in the storm’s path that made landfall in the Florida Keys, making it one of the 10 deadliest hurricanes in the country’s history.

1936: Texas takes a hit

Only one major hurricane struck the United States in 1936, and this time, it came for Texas. The storm made landfall on June 27 in Port Aransas, weakening as it made its way to Corpus Christi. Though the storm did damage boats and crops, there were no reported deaths or injuries.

1937: A short hurricane season

The first tropical disturbance of the 1937 hurricane season was on July 29, and the last was on Oct. 4. The short season only had one major hurricane, near Barbuda in the Caribbean, but it never made landfall.

1938: The hurricane with the fastest forward speed

The Great New England Hurricane of 1938 recorded the fastest forward speed of a hurricane . The storm traversed 600 miles in 12 hours, moving at roughly 60 miles per hour. Due to its trainlike high speeds, it earned the nickname “The Long Island Express.”

1939: Four hurricanes strike Southern California

In 1939, four tropical cyclones hit Southern California in September alone. The most destructive was El Cordonazo, which killed 93 people and was the only tropical storm to make landfall in the Golden State in the 20th century.

1940: One of the wettest hurricanes in Louisiana history

An unnamed Category 1 hurricane in August 1940 became one of the wettest ever recorded in Louisiana’s history . Rainfall peaked in the city of Crowley with 33.71 inches.

1941: A hurricane breaches the Texas seawall

A September 1941 hurricane breached the seawall in Texas near East Matagorda Bay. Water from the rising tide flooded residential and business areas, covering a local airport with up to three feet of water. In total, the hurricane caused $7 million in damage, with $5 million attributed to crop damage.

1942: Multiple hurricanes batter Texas

The 1942 season is only one of six in which multiple hurricanes made landfall in Texas. The worst of them hit Matagorda Bay on Aug. 30 , causing eight fatalities, $11.5 million in property damage, and $15 million in crop damage.

1943: Surprise hurricane during World War II

During World War II, ship broadcasts in the Gulf of Mexico went silent so the military could watch for German U-boats. That radio silence also meant no transmissions on weather conditions, so the hurricane that hit the Houston-Galveston area of Texas in late July came without warning, earning its nickname of the “surprise” hurricane.

1944: Hurricane sinks World War II ships

The Great Atlantic Hurricane made landfall on Long Island and Rhode Island in September 1944, causing 46 fatalities on land and $100 million in damage. The storm also sank five World War II vessels , killing 334 additional people.

1945: Homestead Hurricane destroys blimp hangars

In 1945, the Homestead Hurricane’s winds started a fire at Naval Air Station Richmond in South Florida, burning down three wooden hangars used during World War II to house blimps and planes. The storm and its resulting fire ultimately destroyed 25 blimps and 360 aircraft and injured 200 people at the naval base.

1946: No hurricane deaths in the US

The hurricane season of 1946 was a tame one. No lives were lost to tropical storms in the U.S. in 1946, and property damage stayed under $10 million, compared to $80 million in 1945 and $150 million in 1944.

1947: An attempt to weaken a hurricane

For the first time in 1947, the government tried to weaken a hurricane through a weather modification program called Project Cirrus. They used a method called cloud seeding, which involves releasing a substance into the air (in this case, dry ice) to modify the storm.

That same year, the Army Air Corps led a flight into a hurricane, marking the start of the Air Force Reserve’s Hurricane Hunters , who measure storms by entering the eye of the hurricane.

1948: Two hurricanes hit South Florida

Two hurricanes hit South Florida two weeks apart in September 1948 and October 1948, causing extensive flood damage. The first of the two was the most destructive, with wind gusts of 160 miles per hour and a 6-foot storm surge.

1949: Hurricane damages crops in Florida

A late August 1949 hurricane followed a similar path in South Florida as the Great Miami Hurricane of 1928 but caused twice the damage , particularly agriculturally. According to NOAA, there was $45 million worth of damage in Florida alone, mainly affecting crops.

1950: Hurricanes given names

The first year that hurricanes in the Atlantic were given names was 1950. The convention was to use names from the British–U.S. World War II spelling alphabet, starting with Hurricane Able. The fifth storm of the season, Hurricane Easy, didn’t live up to its moniker—the Category 3 hurricane devastated the town of Cedar Key, Florida.

1951: Hurricane Charlie devastates Jamaica

No hurricanes made landfall in the U.S. in 1951. However, the third hurricane of the season , Hurricane Charlie, was one of the most destructive storms in Jamaica’s history, killing more than 150 people, leaving 25,000 homeless, and causing $50 million in damage.

1952: A February tropical storm

In 1952, an unnamed winter tropical storm hit Florida on Feb. 2, Groundhog Day—well before the start of the hurricane season in June. It’s the only known February tropical storm in the Atlantic basin, and it wasn’t until 2015 that NOAA’s National Hurricane Research Division classified the low-pressure system as a tropical storm.

1953: Hurricane naming system changes again

In 1953, the U.S. scrapped the military naming system of 1950 and opted instead for a list of names traditionally used for women. While the new names were ready to go, the season was relatively tame, with only two hurricanes reaching the U.S. and they were not severe. There was one death and damage totaled about $6 million.

1954: Sister storms wallop New England

Until 1954, many people believed that hurricanes spared New England, but that changed when a duo of tropical cyclones hit the region in late August and early September of that year. The Category 3 hurricanes —known as “The Twins,” Carol and Edna—came close to destroying a few towns in Rhode Island. Hurricane Carol caused more property damage than any other hurricane by that point in recorded history, a record the storm would only hold for one year. As a result, NOAA retired the names Carol and Edna from hurricane nomenclature due to the severity of the storm’s destruction. (Carol was the first name to be retired in history.)

1955: Another set of sister storms sets records

Hurricanes Diane and Connie outdid the damage caused by Carol and Edna the previous year. The two storms hit the coast of North Carolina just five days apart, tracking up to Washington D.C., and eventually, New England . Hurricane Diane followed so soon after Hurricane Connie that their floods caused more property damage than any hurricane in history up until that point. It’s estimated that Diane alone led to 200 total fatalities . NOAA also retired the names Diane and Connie as a result.

1956: A mild hurricane season

The 1956 season featured only a few hurricanes, and those storms were of low intensity, especially compared to the hurricanes of the two previous seasons. Hurricane Flossy was the only storm to touch down in the contiguous U.S., causing heavy rainfall in Alabama and Florida.

1957: A destructive June hurricane

The 1957 hurricane season came back with a bit of a vengeance, mainly thanks to Hurricane Audrey , a June storm that caused an estimated 500 deaths. Audrey was also the likely cause of several tornadoes reported around its strike zone. The storm made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane in Louisiana, near the Louisiana-Texas border.

1958: No hurricanes until August

Significant storm activity over the Atlantic didn’t occur until mid-August in the 1958 season. In late September, Hurricane Helene became one of the most intense and destructive of the season, causing $11 million in damage in North Carolina , though it caused no fatalities.

1959: Hurricane warnings save lives

Several of 1959’s hurricanes were weak, just barely achieving hurricane status. Hurricane Gracie, which occurred late in the season, was the only major hurricane to reach the mainland U.S. It was also one of the most intense, causing 22 out of the 24 fatalities that year. Accurate warnings enabled many people to evacuate before Gracie wreaked havoc, resulting in the low death count.

1960: Hurricane Donna reaches far

Once Hurricane Donna struck Florida in September 1960, it was reported that its winds reached more U.S. coastline than any other storm on record. It was also the most destructive hurricane in Florida’s history at the time, and it holds the record for retaining major hurricane status longer than any other storm in the Atlantic basin, lasting for a total of nine days.

1961: Hurricane Carla forces evacuation

Hurricane Carla was a Category 5 storm until just before it touched down in Texas as a Category 4 in mid-September 1961. Still, Carla was one of the largest and most intense hurricanes ever to strike the Gulf Coast. Fortunately, there were fewer than 50 fatalities, thanks to early warnings that allowed about 350,000 people to evacuate.

1962: A quiet year for hurricanes

With significantly fewer storms than usual, 1962 was the quietest hurricane season since 1939 . Even the storms that occurred were less intense than expected. The first hurricane of the season, Alma, barely reached hurricane status and only remained one for 12 hours.

1963: Hurricane Flora kills more than 7,000

The 1963 hurricane season started slowly , but there were only two days without tropical cyclones on weather charts from Sept. 10 to Oct. 30. Hurricane Flora was the one that went down in history, becoming one of the deadliest storms the Atlantic had ever experienced. It killed an estimated 7,186 people and hit Haiti the hardest , taking the lives of over 5,000 people in the country. Flora’s agricultural damage—totaling a conservative estimate of $528.6 million—particularly devastated Cuba’s economy.

1964: Four hurricanes hit the US mainland

Four hurricanes hit the U.S. mainland in 1964, an occurrence that had only happened five other times since 1900. Though none were major, three of the four were severe : Hurricane Cleo, Hurricane Dora, and Hurricane Hilda. The season resulted in $515 million in damage and 266 deaths across the U.S. and other parts of the Atlantic basin.

1965: Official hurricane season is established

1965 marked the establishment of an official hurricane season in the Atlantic , running annually from June 1 to Nov. 30. Nearly all—97%—tropical cyclones occur between those dates, according to NOAA.

Also in 1965, Hurricane Betsy caused major damage, knocking out 90% of New Orleans’ power . At the time, it was the most destructive hurricane on record.

1966: Alma and Inez break records

The first storm of the 1966 season , Hurricane Alma, arrived earlier than any other hurricane since 1825. Hurricane Inez, another 1966 storm, had more advisories issued about it than any hurricane before it, with a total of 65. Inez was also the first single tropical cyclone to hit the West Indies, the Bahamas, Florida, and Mexico.

1967: A late, but active season

The 1967 season saw a record number of hurricanes for a season whose first storm didn’t develop until the end of August. The season also saw three hurricanes—Beulah, Chloe, and Doria—existing at the same time, a rare phenomenon.

1968: Hurricane Gladys ends a drought

1968 had an unusually calm hurricane season until Hurricane Gladys came along in October. The storm brought rainfall that ended North Carolina’s worst drought since 1932. Unfortunately, Gladys also killed five people and caused $6.7 million in damage.

1969: Hurricane Camille clobbers the US

The hurricane season of 1969 was quite active, but one tropical cyclone, Hurricane Camille, has gone down in infamy. The Category 5 storm made landfall in Mississippi in mid-August 1969, with winds reaching an estimated 200 miles per hour. It’s one of only four Category 5 hurricanes to make landfall in the continental U.S ., and it’s also one of the most expensive hurricanes in the country’s history, costing $1.4 billion in damages.

1970: Hurricane Celia destroys Texas

The only hurricane that significantly affected the U.S. during the 1970 season was Hurricane Celia. The storm, which made landfall near Corpus Christi, Texas , in early August, caused $453.8 million in property and crop damage . At the time, it was the costliest hurricane to ever hit Texas, outdoing the damage of Hurricane Carla nearly a decade earlier.

1971: Hurricane Ginger sets long-lasting record

Hurricane Ginger broke records in 1971, becoming the second-longest-running hurricane in the Atlantic basin by lasting 27.25 days (20 of which it was classified as a hurricane). However, the most destructive named storm of the year was Tropical Storm Doria, which dumped heavy rains throughout New England. Of the eight storm-related fatalities in the U.S. in 1971, six were the result of Doria.

1972: Category 1 hurricane wreaks havoc

There were fewer tropical storms and hurricanes in 1972 than in any year since 1930, and most of the storms formed in temperate waters instead of the Tropics. The only storm that originated in tropical waters was Hurricane Agnes, which killed about 120 people and caused $3.1 billion in property damage. It became the first Category 1 hurricane in the Atlantic to have its name retired .

1973: One of the least damaging seasons

1973 was one of the least damaging hurricane seasons , with only 16 fatalities throughout the Atlantic, Caribbean, and Gulf of Mexico and less than $20 million in damage. For the first time since 1962, no hurricanes crossed the U.S. coastline in 1973.

1974: Hurricane Fifi strikes Honduras

In mid-September 1974, Hurricane Fifi grazed the coast of Honduras and made landfall in Belize, though it caused much more damage to the former. In some regions, Fifi caused 24 inches of rain in 36 hours, triggering mudslides and flash floods that destroyed 182 towns and killed 8,000 people in Honduras alone.

1975: A return to hurricane normalcy

After five years of low hurricane activity in the Atlantic, 1975 marked a return to normalcy . However, Hurricane Eloise was the only storm to make landfall in the U.S. that year. It was also the most destructive storm of the season, causing more than $100 million in agricultural losses in Alabama alone.

1976: Hurricane Belle destroys Northeast crops

Hurricane Belle was one of two named storms to hit the U.S. in 1976 , though the other was barely classified as a tropical storm. Belle significantly weakened the day before it hit Long Island, New York, on Aug. 10, yet the hurricane still caused $100 million in damage in the U.S., primarily due to the crops it ruined in the Northeast.

1977: A late-season storm comes for Mexico

Anita, the first hurricane of 1977, didn’t land until Aug. 29 and was one of the most intense storms ever in the Gulf of Mexico . Thanks to advance warnings, about 100,000 people evacuated from coastal areas before Hurricane Anita made landfall, including 35,000 in Mexico, where the storm hit as a Category 4 hurricane on Sept. 2.

1978: Another hurricane name change

1978 was the last year that Atlantic tropical storms were solely given names traditionally used for women . The following year included names traditionally given to men as well.

Also in 1978, Hurricane Greta hit Central America in late September, killing four people in Belize and one person in Honduras. There was an estimated $25 million in damages to crops and utilities in Belize alone.

1979: A new hurricane damages record

After a few years of relatively little damage to the U.S. during hurricane season, the tides turned in 1979. The season’s tropical storms and cyclones led to a record $3 billion in damages for the U.S., the most destructive of which was Hurricane Frederic . The September storm mainly struck Alabama and Mississippi and caused $2.3 billion of destruction.

1980: Hurricane Allen prompts oil rig evacuations

Hurricane Allen was the most noteworthy storm of the 1980 season, a Category 5 hurricane that affected Haiti, Texas, and several Caribbean countries. Allen destroyed two offshore oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, and 13 people died in a helicopter crash during a rig evacuation.

1981: Five hurricanes in September

There were no named storms in the Gulf of Mexico in 1981, an occurrence that had only happened two previous years, 1927 and 1962. The season also included five hurricanes in September alone—only twice before had a single month seen that many tropical cyclones.

1982: Least active hurricane season in 50 years

1982 was the least active hurricane season in 50 years , based on both the total number of hurricanes and the number of days in which there were active hurricanes. Like the previous year, no hurricanes struck the contiguous U.S. in 1982, marking only the second time in the 20th century that the U.S. was spared two years in a row.

1983: Alicia ends hurricane drought

On Aug. 18, 1983, Hurricane Alicia brought an end to the longest period in the 20th century without a hurricane hitting the contiguous U.S. The Category 3 storm , which hit Southeast Texas, spawned 23 tornadoes, killed 21 people, and caused $2 billion in damages.

1984: Hurricane Diana hits eastern US

Hurricane Diana was the first and strongest hurricane of the 1984 season and the most intense storm to hit the Eastern seaboard in three decades, since 1954’s Hurricane Hazel. Diana’s destruction totaled $65 million in the U.S., $26 million of which can be attributed to agricultural damage.

1985: Worst season in 69 years

The 1985 hurricane season was the worst in 69 years, causing $4.45 billion in damages and prompting a million people to evacuate. Six hurricanes and two tropical storms hit the contiguous U.S. that year, the most since 1916. The storms of 1985—most notably Hurricane Gloria and Hurricane Juan—killed 100 people in Puerto Rico, 36 in the U.S., and 10 in Cuba.

1986: Strongest hurricane doesn’t make landfall

The strongest hurricane of the 1986 season was Earl, which was also the season’s longest-lasting storm, persisting for seven days of hurricane-force winds. However, Earl never made landfall. Two hurricanes, Bonnie and Charley, did hit the U.S., causing $2 million and $15 million in damages, respectively.

1987: Hurricane Emily breaks Caribbean silence

In 1987, Hurricane Emily became the first major hurricane to hit the Caribbean Islands since 1981, an unusually long stretch for the region. At the end of September, the storm made landfall in the Dominican Republic, killing three people and causing $75 million worth of destruction.

1988: Most destructive in Jamaica’s history

Hurricane Gilbert hit Jamaica as a Category 3 storm in mid-September 1988, the country’s first direct hit in 37 years. The hurricane damaged 95% of Jamaica’s hospitals and destroyed half of the country’s domestic water supply. In Jamaica alone, Gilbert cost $4 million in damages and became the most destructive hurricane in the nation’s history. Two days after the hit on Jamaica, Gilbert moved on to strike Mexico as a Category 5 hurricane. In total, it caused $5 billion of destruction globally .

1989: Hurricane Hugo wipes out bananas

In late September 1989, Hurricane Hugo, a Category 5 storm that was downgraded to Category 4 right before landfall, touched down in the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and South and North Carolina. The storm left 60,000 people homeless and caused upward of $10 billion in property damages , becoming the costliest hurricane in the country’s history (at least, for the next few years).

1990: The strongest hurricane stays in the water

Hurricane Gustav was the only Category 3 storm of the 1990 season , but it never made landfall. Tropical Storm Marco, however, did touch down in the U.S., causing seven deaths and $57 million in damages.

1991: Storms form in Bermuda hotspot

Most of the major tropical storms of the 1991 season originated in a hot spot near Bermuda , but Hurricane Bob developed in the Bahamas. The storm hit New England in mid-August, knocking out power to 2.1 million homes and causing $1.5 billion in damages in the region.

1992: Hurricane Andrew destroys weather instruments

Hurricane Andrew, a Category 5 storm that hit South Florida in 1992, is one of the strongest and costliest hurricanes on record. Andrew’s winds flattened neighborhoods with speeds so high that they destroyed weather station instruments designed to track high wind speeds (though a privately owned instrument measured the storm’s winds at 177 mph).

1993: Another Labor Day hurricane does less damage

Hurricane Emily was the only major hurricane of the 1993 season. Like the infamous storm of 1935, it landed in North Carolina during Labor Day weekend. Emily cost the tourism industry about $10 million, even though the Tar Heel state took many precautions. More than 160,000 people were evacuated, and there were only two casualties: a pair of swimmers who drowned in the town of Nags Head, North Carolina.

1994: A dry September and October

Although September and October are usually active months for hurricanes, there were no storms during these months in 1994. However, the season did see two hurricanes develop in November for the first time since 1980. The earliest storm of the season , Alberto, didn’t make it to hurricane status, but the July storm still produced massive rainfall and floods in Alabama, Georgia, and Florida, killing 33 people.

1995: A busy, costly hurricane season

1995 was an unusually active year, and several hurricanes caused significant damage: Hurricane Opal generated $3 billion in damages in the southeastern U.S. and Florida panhandle; Hurricane Luis cost the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean $2.5 billion, and Hurricane Marilyn caused another $1.5 billion worth of damage in the Caribbean, mainly to the U.S. Virgin Islands.

1996: Record-breaking hurricane numbers

1995 and 1996 were both active seasons with a combined total of 20 hurricanes , the most for consecutive seasons since accurate reporting began in the 1940s. In 1996, six hurricanes passed over the Caribbean—the most since 1916—though they were all short-lived.

1997: El Niño causes inactive season

After a busy 1995 and 1996, 1997 had a particularly quiet hurricane season : Only one tropical storm developed between August and September (the average is six), and no hurricanes formed in August for the first time since 1961. There were fewer hurricanes than average due to El Niño, whose winds made it difficult for hurricanes to form. Hurricane Danny was the only hurricane to make landfall in 1997, killing five people.

1998: Hurricane Mitch triggers extreme destruction

Tropical storms caused more than 9,000 fatalities during the 1998 hurricane season , primarily because of Hurricane Mitch, which caused massive flooding in Honduras and Nicaragua. Another 9,000 people went missing because of Hurricane Mitch, which became the second-deadliest storm on record (behind the Great Hurricane of 1780).

1999: A record number of Category 4 hurricanes

The 1999 season saw five Category 4 hurricanes , the most in a single season since 1886. However, the deadliest storm that year was not a hurricane but a tropical depression. In early October, heavy rains and flooding caused 400 fatalities in Mexico.

2000: Long-lasting Hurricane Alberto fails to make landfall

In August 2020, Hurricane Alberto became the third longest-lasting hurricane on record in the Atlantic basin, but it remained at sea for most of its existence. Two storms made landfall in the U.S. that year: Hurricane Gordon and Tropical Storm Helene, both in September. They were not particularly destructive stateside, though the former did wreak havoc in Guatemala.

2001: The costliest and deadliest tropical storm in history

As of August 2024, Tropical Storm Allison is the costliest tropical storm in U.S. recorded history. It killed 41 people and caused $15.1 billion in damages (adjusted to 2024 dollars). Allison is only one of two tropical storms to have had its name retired .

2002: El Niño tampers hurricane season again

Because of El Niño, there were fewer hurricanes than average during the 2002 season. Hurricane Lili was the only hurricane to hit the U.S. between 1999 and 2002 and the only storm to make landfall while still classified as a hurricane in 2002.

2003: Hurricane Isabel slams the mid-Atlantic

Hurricane Isabel was one of the worst storms ever to hit the mid-Atlantic region, particularly affecting the Chesapeake Bay. Isabel was also the costliest and deadliest hurricane of the season , leading to 17 direct deaths and $3.3 billion in damages.

2004: Hurricane Jeanne causes Haiti mudslides

The 2004 hurricane season was a truly devastating one, claiming 3,100 lives (the second highest number in 30 years) and causing a record $45 billion in property damage in the U.S. Four hurricanes slammed Florida within six weeks, leading the state to temporarily trade in its nickname of the Sunshine State for the Plywood State. The last of the foursome, Hurricane Jeanne, was particularly destructive, causing intense rainfalls and deadly mudslides in the mountains of Haiti.

2005: Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans

Hurricane Katrina is perhaps the most infamous hurricane in U.S. history. The Category 3 hurricane displaced more than a million people and damaged over a million homes around the Gulf Coast, but New Orleans bore the brunt of the devastation. As of August 2024, Katrina is the costliest hurricane to hit the U.S., causing $200 billion (in 2024 dollars) in damage and killing 1,392 people (a number NOAA adjusted in 2023).

2006: The calm following the storm

After two years of frequent tropical storms, 2006 was comparatively calm, with no hurricanes making landfall in the U.S. for the first time in five years. Three tropical storms managed to do so, however, but only one in late August, Ernesto, did meaningful damage (totalling $500 million).

2007: Two Category 5 hurricanes make landfall

2007 was the first hurricane season in which two Category 5 storms made landfall . Hurricane Dean was the first, slamming the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico in late August. The second was Hurricane Felix , which struck northeastern Nicaragua in early September.

2008: Hurricane Ike disrupts Montréal’s subways

The most memorable storm of 2008 , Hurricane Ike, mainly impacted Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas, though its effects reached as far north as Canada. The storm caused high levels of humidity that sparked an electrical malfunction , which temporarily shut down part of Montréal’s subway system.

2009: A hurricane lull

The 2009 season had the lowest number of named storms in the Atlantic since 1997, and no hurricanes made landfall in the U.S. either. It was the 13th season with no hurricanes coming ashore in the States since 1943.

2010: High hurricane activity returns

After the quiet of 2009, the 2010 hurricane season emerged with a vengeance. The season saw the second-highest number of hurricanes (tying with 1969 and outdone only by 2005). However, it was also the only season to have more than nine hurricanes without a single one making landfall in the U.S.

2011: Another record hurricane season

Like the year prior, the 2011 hurricane season also had 19 named storms; it tied with 1887, 1995, and 2010 as the third busiest tropical cyclone year in the Atlantic basin. Hurricane Irene also ended the lull the U.S. had been enjoying, marking the first time since Ike in 2008 that a hurricane made landfall in the States.

2012: Hurricane Sandy clobbers the East Coast

2012 was the third year in a row that the U.S. had 19 named storms , but there’s one in particular that stands out. Nearly half of all U.S. states—24, to be exact—felt the effects of Hurricane Sandy in late October, but the eastern seaboard (where it made landfall in New Jersey) was hit hardest. Totaling $50 billion in damages (in 2012 dollars), it is among the costliest storms in U.S. history. Sandy also led to three feet of snowfall in West Virginia and North Carolina.

2013: A quiet hurricane season

For the first time since 1994, there were no major hurricanes in 2013 . Tropical Storm Andrea was the only storm to make landfall in the U.S., touching down in Florida. The storm also caused 11 tornadoes across Florida and North Carolina, but was relatively tame in terms of its damage.

2014: North Carolina’s earliest hurricane

Making landfall on July 3, 2014, Hurricane Arthur became the earliest in-season hurricane to touch down in North Carolina on record. The storm caused no fatalities , making it the strongest hurricane to come ashore in the contiguous U.S. without resulting in any direct deaths.

2015: Ana reveals wrecked schooner

Tropical Storm Ana became the earliest tropical cyclone on record to make landfall in the U.S. when it touched down near South Carolina on May 10. Along the beach in Surf City, North Carolina, Ana’s winds revealed parts of a sunken schooner that was wrecked nearly 100 years earlier.

2016: A rare January hurricane

The Atlantic hurricane season started extremely early in 2016 with January’s Hurricane Alex, the first hurricane to form in January since 1938. The storm hit the Azores, nine islands that are a part of Portugal, as a tropical storm. According to The Weather Channel, all prior hurricanes tracking near the Azores on record occurred in August or September.

2017: Three costly hurricanes make history

Within the harrowing month of September in 2017, Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria hit the U.S. All three hurricanes were Category 4 , and all three remain on the list of the 10 costliest hurricanes in U.S. history (when adjusted for 2024 dollars). Besides Katrina, Harvey is the most destructive hurricane in the nation’s recorded history, doing more than $125 billion of damage .

2018: Hurricane Michael hits Florida Panhandle

With sustained winds reaching 161 miles per hour, Hurricane Michael made landfall in Florida on Oct. 10 and caused at least 45 fatalities . It was one of the most devastating storms to touch down in the area, with then-Florida Gov. Rick Scott calling Hurricane Michael “the worst storm that the Florida Panhandle has ever seen."

2019: Fourth year of frequent hurricanes

There were more hurricanes than average in the Atlantic during the 2019 season, the fourth year in a row that could be said. Only one other four-year period can claim that record: 1998 to 2001. There were two Category 5 storms in the 2019 season, only the second time in 12 years that happened. The first, Hurricane Dorian, caused historic damage in the Bahamas, and the second, Hurricane Lorenzo, affected Ireland and the United Kingdom.

2020: A record year for named storms

2020 featured a record-breaking 30 named storms , marking the fifth consecutive year with more hurricanes than average in the Atlantic. It was also the second time in recorded history that the Greek alphabet was used to name storms after the initial list of 21 names was exhausted. There were 12 named storms that came ashore in the contiguous U.S., breaking 1916’s previous record of nine.

2021: Hurricane Ida devastates Louisiana again

The 2021 season started early and marked the seventh year in a row that a named storm formed before hurricane season officially began on June 1. The worst storm of all, though, Hurricane Ida , hit southeastern Louisiana at Category 4 strength on Aug. 29, 16 years to the day after Hurricane Katrina slammed the same part of the state. Ida then moved up north , causing disastrous flooding and destructive tornadoes in the Northeast. With 96 deaths tied to the hurricane and $75 billion in damage, Ida was named the deadliest and most destructive tropical cyclone of the 2021 season.

2022: Hurricane Fiona slams Puerto Rico

Hurricane Fiona was one of the worst storms of the 2022 season . The Category 1 hurricane wreaked havoc on Puerto Rico in mid-September, leaving much of the island without power and running water for days. The damage came only five years after Hurricane Maria caused destruction throughout the U.S. territory. Fiona then hit the Dominican Republic, Turks and Caicos, Bermuda, and eventually, Nova Scotia, becoming the costliest weather event to hit Atlantic Canada on record at the time.

2023: Hurricane Idalia creates devastating storm surge

Fueled by record-warm surface temperatures in the Atlantic Ocean and an El Niño climate pattern, 20 named storms formed in 2023. The title of worst hurricane of the year, though, went to Hurricane Idalia , which drove storm surges 7 to 12 feet above ground level in some places along the Gulf Coast. After making landfall in late August, Idalia left $3.6 billion in damages in its wake and claimed 12 lives across the U.S.

2024: Hurricane Helene floods the southern Appalachians

The 2024 hurricane season started strong with Beryl, making history in early July as the earliest Category 5 hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic basin. Though Beryl left a swath of destruction behind, two deadlier storms were yet to come—Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Helene caused massive flooding in the southern Appalachians and wind damage across the Southeast in September 2024; with more than 250 direct and indirect fatalities , it became the nation’s deadliest hurricane since Katrina. Meanwhile, Milton spawned a tornado outbreak and storm surges along the Florida coast in October 2024, impacting millions of structures and leading to 42 deaths.

Additional writing by Cu Fleshman. Story editing by Jaimie Etkin. Copy editing by Lois Hince. Photo selection by Michael Flocker.