The '1988 Atlantic hurricane season' officially began on
June 1,
1988, and lasted until
November 30,
1988. These dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most
tropical cyclones form in the
Atlantic basin.
The most notable storm of the season was
Hurricane Gilbert, the strongest Atlantic hurricane ever observed at the time; Gilbert took a path through the
Caribbean Sea and
Gulf of Mexico, causing devastation in
Jamaica,
Mexico, and many other island nations.
Hurricane Joan caused very heavy damage and over 200 deaths, mostly in
Nicaragua.
Storms
Tropical Depression One
The first tropical depression of the season formed just before the season started on
May 30 in the northwest Caribbean Sea. It moved northward across
Cuba,
[1] never encountering favorable
conditions for development with
Hurricane Hunters failing to identify a well-defined circulation.
[2] The depression dissipated on
June 2 in the
Florida Straits and degenerated into an open
trough of low pressure.
[1][4]
The depression and its precursor disturbance dropped heavy rainfall across
Cuba for about one week,
[5] peaking at 40.35 inches (1025 mm), including a daily peak of 34.13 inches (867 mm). This is the second highest known rainfall total from a tropical cyclone in the country. The rainfall most affected the province of
Cienfuegos, though also impacted the provinces of
Villa Clara, and
Sancti SpÃritus,
Ciego de Ãvila, and
Camagüey.
[6] The depression also spawned a tornado in the city of
Camagüey, destroying five
Soviet planes and multiple buildings.
[7] The flooding prompted officials to use rescue crews, helicopters, and amphibious vehicles to evacuate 65,000 residents in low-lying areas to higher grounds.
The storm left many without power and communications, and also severely damaged the transportation infrastructure by damaging roads and railroad tracks
and destroying 6 bridges. Flooding from the depression damaged buildings across the country, including damaging 1,000 houses and destroying 200 homes in Camagüey Province alone.
[8] The weather service in Camagüey Province considered it the worst flooding since
Hurricane Flora in
1963.
[9] Throughout the country, the depression affected about 90,000 people, including several people injured
[10] and a total of 37 people killed,
including 3 indirect deaths from electrocution.
In response to the severe flooding, the
Red Cross of the
Soviet Union assisted the central provinces of Cuba by sending medical units, tents, blankets, and other necessary items by plane.
[11] In
Florida, the depression produced light rain, reaching 3.18 inches at
Pompano Beach.
[4]
Tropical Storm Alberto
A Tropical Depression formed off
South Carolina on
August 5 and followed the
East Coast of the United States northwards. It became a tropical storm on
August 7 at a record northern
latitude and crossed the
Canadian Maritimes before becoming
extratropical near
Newfoundland. There was no significant damage.
Tropical Storm Beryl
A tropical depression developed over
Louisiana on
August 7. It drifted south and strengthened to Tropical Storm Beryl before returning to
New Orleans with 50 mph winds and heading inland. One death at sea was attributed to Beryl, and damage to coastal areas was estimated at $3 million (1988 USD). Excessive rain fell along the central
Gulf Coast, with local amounts of 16 inches over a one-week period at
Dauphin Island, Alabama.
[13]
Tropical Storm Chris
A tropical depression formed in the central tropical
Atlantic on
August 21. It passed though the
Lesser Antilles, across
Hispaniola and through the
Bahamas before finally becoming Tropical Storm Chris east of
Florida on
August 28. It made landfall near
Savannah, Georgia and moved up the
Eastern Seaboard as a tropical depression, merging with a frontal system on
August 30. Three deaths occurred in
Puerto Rico from the depression's 4.5 inches of rain. A tornado in
South Carolina killed one, while overall damage was minor, amounting to $500,000 (1988 USD) from its heavy rainfall.
[14]
Chris is unusual for its extended duration between forming and attaining tropical storm status.
Hurricane Debby
Debby formed from the southern part of a tropical wave that became Tropical Storm Chris. On
August 31, Debby became a tropical depression as it drifted slowly westward. On
September 1, Debby reached tropical storm strength as it neared the Mexican coastline. Debby briefly reached hurricane strength for 6 hours before making landfall south of
Tuxpan, Veracruz. The mountainous terrain weakened the storm quickly back to a tropical depression. The remnants entered the
Eastern Pacific, and re-organized into Tropical Depression Seventeen-E before dissipating between the
Baja California Peninsula and mainland
Mexico.
Debby killed ten people in
Mexico and injured sixteen others, mostly caused by mudslides. In
Veracruz, 300,000 people were forced to flee from rising floodwaters. The storm caused isolated power outages.
Tropical Storm Ernesto
Ernesto formed east of
Bermuda on
September 3 and moved rapidly east across the Atlantic. It was absorbed by an
extratropical low north of the Azores. There were no reports of damage or casualties.
Unnamed Tropical Storm
Tropical Depression Thirteen formed northeast of
Cape Verde on
September 7. It headed north-northwest and faded out west of the
Western Sahara region on
September 10. Ship and satellite observations indicate it maintained tropical storm strength for about 48 hours, but in view of its extreme eastern track it was not assigned a name at the time. Moderate to heavy rain was reported along the west coast of
Africa, but no damage was reported. It should be noted that it was not estimated to have reached tropical storm intensity until after the fact, hence the lack of a name.
[15]
Hurricane Florence
Florence formed in the western
Gulf of Mexico on
September 7, and after a couple of days of rather aimless motion accelerated rapidly northwards. It became a hurricane about 12 hours before crossing the
Mississippi Delta and passing over
New Orleans and
Lake Pontchartrain. The dwindling storm was tracked as far as northeast
Texas. Locally heavy rains fell east of the track of Florence.
[16]
Damage in
Louisiana was estimated at $2.5 million (1988 USD), with a further $300,000 due to flooding in the
Florida Panhandle. One storm-related death was reported.
Hurricane Gilbert
A tropical depression formed just east of the Lesser Antilles on
September 8. It moved to the west-northwest, and became a tropical storm the next day as it passed through the islands. Gilbert turned to the west, and rapidly intensified from a tropical storm on the 10th to a
Category 3 hurricane on the 11th. After remaining a moderate Category 3 hurricane, Gilbert again rapidly intensified on the 13th and 14th to a peak of 185 mph in the western Caribbean. It weakened slightly after peaking, and hit the Yucatán Peninsula as a 165 mph hurricane. After weakening over the Peninsula to a 95 mph hurricane, Gilbert again re-strengthened in the western Gulf of Mexico, and made landfall south of
Brownsville, Texas as a 135 mph Category 4. It turned to the northeast, and dissipated over
Michigan on
September 20.
Hurricane Gilbert was the most intense
Category 5 hurricane ever observed in the Atlantic until it was surpassed by
Hurricane Wilma in the
2005 season. The storm caused $5 billion (1988 USD) in damage across the
Caribbean and into
Central America. Gilbert was the first hurricane to make landfall in
Jamaica since 1951, and is one of the few storms to have made landfall as Category 5 (in Mexico). It killed 318 people, mostly in
Mexico.
Hurricane Helene
Helene formed west of
Cape Verde on
September 19 from a tropical wave. It moved to the west-southwest and became a tropical storm the next day. Very favorable conditions allowed the storm to continue to strengthen, and Helene attained hurricane status on the 21st. Helene steadily intensified, and peaked at 145 mph winds on the 23rd in the tropical Atlantic Ocean. It turned to the north, and weakened to a minimal hurricane over the north Atlantic. Helene accelerated to the northeast, and restrengthened to a 105 mph hurricane on the 29th before weakening due to cold waters. Helene became extratropical on
September 30 over the north Atlantic Ocean and dissipated shortly thereafter. It never approached land and no damage or casualties were reported.
Tropical Storm Isaac
Tropical Storm Isaac was a short-lived system, being named on
September 30 east of the
Lesser Antilles but maintaining storm strength for only 18 hours. The circulation faded away soon after. There were no reports of damage or casualties. Isaac's remnants later entered the Pacific Ocean, where they became Tropical Depression Twenty-E.
Hurricane Joan
A tropical wave organized into a tropical depression in the central tropical Atlantic on
October 10. After moving to the northwest, it turned to the west, where it strengthened into a tropical storm. Joan moved through the southern
Lesser Antilles on the 14th, and paralleled the northern coast of
South America as a minimal tropical storm. It moved offshore on the 17th, and attained hurricane status early on the 18th. Drifting to the west, Joan rapidly intensified and reached winds of 125 mph on the 19th. After looping, the hurricane rapidly weakened, but upon moving to the west it again rapidly strengthened, peaking at 145 mph winds just before making landfall near
Bluefields,
Nicaragua, on the 22nd. Joan crossed Central America, and when it reached the Eastern Pacific it was renamed
Tropical Storm Miriam.
Hurricane Joan killed 148 people in Nicaragua (where it made landfall as a
Category 4), and another 68 people in other affected nations. Damage was extensive along its path, amounting to $2 billion (1988 USD), half of which occurred in Nicaragua. Its track along the northern coast of South America was very rare, one of a few Atlantic tropical cyclones to do so.
Tropical Storm Keith
The last storm of the season formed from a tropical wave on
November 17 to the south of
Haiti. It moved westward through the
Caribbean Sea, and organized enough to attain tropical storm status on
November 20. Keith rapidly organized, and peaked with winds of 70 mph before making landfall on the northeastern portion of the
Yucatán Peninsula on the 21st. An upper-level trough forced it to the northeast, where upper-level shear and cooler, drier air weakened it to minimal storm strength, typical for November. Keith restrengthened over the southeastern Gulf of Mexico, and struck near
Sarasota, Florida on
November 23. After crossing the state, it became
extratropical on the 24th near
Bermuda, and became an intense extratropical system over the Atlantic with sustained winds reaching minimal hurricane force.
Damage from storm surge in Florida was put at $3 million (1988 USD). The late-season storm caused moderately heavy rains across Florida
[17]. Flooding in western
Cuba caused considerable damage to crops. No fatalities were recorded.
Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE) Rating
The table on the right shows the
ACE for each storm in the season. The ACE is, broadly speaking, a measure of the power of the hurricane multiplied by the length of time it existed for, so hurricanes that lasted a long time have higher ACEs.
1988 storm names
The following names were used for named storms that formed in the north Atlantic in 1988. The names not retired from this list were used again in the
1994 season. This is the same list used for the
1982 season. Storms were named Gilbert, Isaac, Joan, and Keith for the first time in 1988; Florence and Helene were not used in 1982 but had been used in previous lists. Names that were not assigned are marked in .
Retirement
The
World Meteorological Organization retired two names in the spring of 1989: Gilbert and Joan. They were replaced in the
1994 season by Gordon and Joyce.
See also
★
List of notable Atlantic hurricanes
★
List of Atlantic hurricane seasons
References
1. Tropical Depressions of the 1988 Atlantic hurricane season Lixion Avila and Gilbert Clark
2. Forecasters Watching Depression
3. Tropical Depressions of the 1988 Atlantic hurricane season Lixion Avila and Gilbert Clark
4. Rainfall Summary for Tropical Depression One David Roth
5. Storm Floods Central Cuba, Killing Four People
6. Lluvias intensas observadas y grandes inundaciones reportadas Instituto Nacional de Recursos Hidráulicos
7. Storm Kills 14, Six Missing in Cuba
8. Cuba -- Floods
9. Central Cuba Hit by Severe Floods
10. Cuba - Heavy Rains Jun 1988 UNDRO Information Report No. 1 United Nations Department of Humanitarian Affairs
11. Relief Aid to Cuba
12. Rainfall Summary for Tropical Depression One David Roth
13. Tropical Storm Beryl Rainfall Totals
14. Hurricane Chris Rainfall Totals
15. [ftp://ftp.nhc.noaa.gov/pub/storm_archives/atlantic/prelimat/atl1988/unnamed/prelim01.gif Report of Tropical Storm 13]
16. Hurricane Florence Rainfall Totals
17. (HPC)Tropical Storm Keith Rainfall Totals
External links
★
Monthly Weather Review
★ [ftp://ftp.nhc.noaa.gov/pub/storm_archives/atlantic/prelimat/atl1988/ Detailed information on all storms from 1988]
★
Information concerning U.S. rainfall from tropical cyclones in 1988
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