| 4 Majors have hit the US coast 1879 North Carolina August 18, 1879: An extreme hurricane moved north and went on the rampage from the Bahamas to Eastport, Maine (track to the right). In the immediate Mid-Atlantic region, the track of this storm ran very close to a Wilmington - Elizabeth City, N.C. axis to just southeast of Norfolk. It was considered one of the most severe to strike coastal Virginia in the last half century and was probably as severe as the June 1825 storm. The passage of this storm was accompanied by a rapid pressure fall from 29.58 inches at 9:00 am to 29.12 inches at 11:15 am on the 18th, which was the lowest pressure observed in the storm. Five-minute sustained winds rose to 76 mph with gusts toward 100 mph at Cape Henry, before the anemometer was destroyed. The tide at Norfolk rose to 7.8 feet above mean lower low water. Dozens of ships were damaged from the Carolinas northward to Cape Cod. The rainfall from this storm was one of the heaviest in the history of Norfolk, 6.17 inches, with 6.03 inches falling on the 18th...of which 5.13 inches fell in just over 9 hours. On the next page is a chronology of Observations taken at Norfolk, Virginia during the August 1879 hurricane. The Norfolk Virginian described the "red-letter" storm in the following account. "....Yesterday (18th) was one of the red letter days in Norfolk's history. It was the occasion of one of the severest storms which have ever visited this section. The severity of the wind and the extent of the rains were such as have never been experienced in Virginia, and we doubt if the hurricanes of countries subject to such inflictions as visited Norfolk yesterday, have ever suffered to a greater extent from the ravings of the storm than did our city for a number of hours..... ....In the early morning the wind blew from the northeast with a strength which betokened a settled rain storm and gave everyone acquainted with our climate to understand that a bad day and heavy blow was to be expected. As the day wore on the wind became more boisterous.... ....At about ten o'clock the wind had gained such strength that it was dangerous to appear on the streets, while the rain fell in such torrents that it was most disagreeable to do so.....the wind swept along with prodigious strength while the rain fell in torrents, which inundated wharves, streets and the lower floors of a number of buildings. About eleven o'clock it had reached its height, and dealt destruction on every hand. Roofs were blown off houses, trees were up-rooted, wharves destroyed and other injuries to properties inflicted.... ....Water street was inundated and boast were to be seen on the water from the western terminus to Market Square. It is almost impossible to describe the appearance of the city at that time, with its frightened inhabitants running to and fro, the debris scattered along the streets and the wind playing havoc with the signs, trees, roofs, etc. Several ships had run aground in the harbor between Norfolk and Portsmouth. The steamer N.P. Banks was run aground not on the flats of the Norfolk Naval Hospital (in Portsmouth) but on the very grounds of the hospital itself due to the excessive tides. The ferry boat Berkeley filled and sank in her dock on the Berkeley side of the river. The schooner John C. Henry foundered off Gwynn's Island. The storm was described in Portsmouth as the most terrific storm to have visited the area in many years. From the Norfolk-Portsmouth Herald: "....As early as 3 a.m. the rain began to fall in torrents, and the wind rising about the same time, increased in violence until it reached its height between 10 o'clock and noon. To those on shore and in a safe place, if such a place can be found, it was indeed a terrifically grand sight, one not often seen in this harbor, and seen once suffices a life time. The high wind brought in the waters of old ocean, wave piled upon wave until our wharves were submerged, our streets flooded and converted to many places to temporary canals, the tide being the highest ever known. On the waterfront exposed to the full play of the wind and wave, the sight was best seen. At the northward of North Street the waves dashed against the breakwaters, throwing the spray as high as the neighboring houses, while in the harbor and river the wind striking the caps of the waves filled the atmosphere with a fine mist like spray, so that at times it was impossible to see Norfolk, Berkeley or the ships in the harbor...." 1899 North Carolina August 17-18, 1899 (San Ciriaco Hurricane): The damage produced by this storm in North Carolina is considered unparalleled. It left its mark in Virginia as well. On the 16th, wind at Cape Henry reached 52 mph. By the 17th, Cape Henry saw winds peak at 68 mph for five minutes, and gales expanded westward past Norfolk...low lying areas were inundated. Norfolk's pressure fell to 29.62" as five-minute sustained winds reached 42 mph. The storm was quite severe along the James,. At Suffolk, livestock drowned in the flood waters. At Petersburg, a "heavy northeastern storm" began the night of the 17th. Corn and tobacco experienced considerable damage as crops were leveled by the wind. http://www.downeasttour.com/diamond/hurricane1899.htm 1969 Camille http://www.hurricanes-blizzards-noreasters.com/HURRICANECAMILLE.html 1983 Alicia http://www.hurricanes-blizzards-noreasters.com/hurricane-Alicia.html |