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Subject: E19) How many direct hits by hurricanes of various categories
have affected each state?
Contributed by Chris Landsea (NHC)
This table, updated from Jarrell et al. (2001), shows the number
of hurricanes affecting the United States and individual states,
i.e., direct hits. The table shows that, on the average, close to
seven hurricanes every four years (~1.75 per year) strike the United
States, while about three major hurricanes cross the U.S. coast every
five years (0.60 per year). Other noteworthy facts, updated from Jarrell
et al. (2001), are:
- Forty percent of all U.S. hurricanes hit Florida
- Eighty-eight percent of Major hurricanes strikes
have hit either Florida or Texas
- Pennsylvania's only hurricane strike between
1851-2018 was in 1898 (from Blake et al. 2005).
Hurricane direct hits on the mainland U.S. coastline and for individual states
by Saffir/Simpson category
1851-2018
AREA |
CATEGORY |
Major Hurricanes |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
ALL |
|
U.S. Coastline (Texas to Maine) |
121 | 80 | 64 | 24 | 3 | 292 | 91 |
|
Texas | 29 | 16 | 12 | 7 | 0 | 64 | 19 |
| North | 14 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 30 | 6 |
| Central | 12 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 22 | 5 |
| South | 11 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 24 | 9 |
Louisiana | 23 | 14 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 54 | 17 |
Mississippi | 5 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 19 | 8 |
Alabama | 14 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 5 |
Florida | 47 | 36 | 24 | 11 | 2 | 120 | 37 |
| Northwest | 35 | 17 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 66 | 14 |
| Southwest | 21 | 12 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 49 | 17 |
| Southeast | 18 | 14 | 8 | 7 | 2 | 49 | 16 |
| Northeast | 19 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 1 |
Georgia | 16 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 3 |
South Carolina | 17 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 30 | 5 |
North Carolina | 31 | 12 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 56 | 7 |
Virginia | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 |
Maryland | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Delaware | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
New Jersey | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
Pennsylvania | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
New York | 9 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 3 |
Connecticut | 7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 2 |
Rhode Island | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 3 |
Massachusetts | 7 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 1 |
New Hampshire | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Maine | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
Notes:
State totals will not equal U.S. totals and Texas and Florida totals
will not necessarily equal sum of sectional totals since storms may
be counted for more than one state or region.
Regional definitions are found in Appenix A of Jarrell et al. (2001).
Reference
Blake, E.S., E.N. Rappaport, J.D. Jarell, and C.W. Landsea, 2005:
"The Deadliest, Costliest, and Most Intense United States Hurricanes from
1851 to 2004 (and Other Frequently Requested Hurricane Facts.) NOAA
Technical Memorandum NWS-TPC-4, 48 pp.
Jarell, J.D., B.M. Mayfield, E.N. Rappaport, and C.W. Landsea, 2001:
"The Deadliest, Costliest, and Most Intense United States Hurricanes from
1900 to 2000 (and Other Frequently Requested Hurricane Facts.) NOAA
Technical Memorandum NWS-TPC-3, 30 pp.
Last Revised : June 19, 2019
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