On Sept. 21, 1938, the Great New England hurricane (aka the Long Island Express) came barreling ashore on the eastern tip of Long Island, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. Most of the coastal population of the United States’ Northeastern corridor were unprepared since the storm accelerated once it passed Cape Hatteras and was traveling at over 50 mph when it struck. Weather Bureau forecasters couldn’t keep up with the speed of the storm and warnings lagged. Most of the $300 million in damage ($5 billion in 2013 dollars) and over 600 deaths attributed to this storm came from the tremendous storm surge which pushed 13 feet of sea water into downtown Providence.
The hurricane had as great a cultural impact as a meteorological one since it hit not only a densely populated area, but home of the nation’s publishing industry and an artistic and intellectual center. Many novels, movies, and paintings were inspired by the disaster and the storm remained a milestone for New Englanders for decades to come.
