Mobile's Hurricane History

These are significant or memorable hurricanes that have affected the Mobile area since 1900. Most of the storms were very strong while others were extremely destructive. Some are remembered for their heavy rain. Not every hurricane that affected Mobile is listed here although you will find local impact summaries of recent tropical storms and hurricanes at the Mobile National Weather Service office Events Page.

1906, September 27th
Major Hurricane, Category Unknown. The hurricane moved inland in Pensacola, and was the strongest hurricane to strike Pensacola since 1736.

1916, July 5th
Major Hurricane, Category Three. The pressure measured at Fort Morgan was 28.38 inches, or 961 Mb. The Hurricane made landfall just west of Mobile.

1916, October 18th
Major Hurricane, Category Three. Winds reached 114 mph at landfall. It moved inland over Pensacola.

1926, September 20th
Major Hurricane, Category Three. The pressure at Perdido Beach measured 28.20 inches, or 955 Mb. Significant flooding occurred in South Mobile and Baldwin Counties.

1969, August 17th
Hurricane Camille, Category Five. Camille is the strongest known land-falling hurricane in recorded history. Winds were estimated at 190 mph at landfall. Hurricane Camille was extremely small, and moved inland near Bay St. Louis, MS. Great damage occurred throughout coastal Mississippi, with a recorded pressure of 26.84 inches, or 909 Mb. The storm surge was estimated at 22-25 feet. The devastation of Camille inspired the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. Watch streaming video of A Lady Named Camille, a 29 minute documentary of the damage from Camille

1979, September 12th
Hurricane Frederic, Category Three. Frederic strengthened from a category one to a category four storm in 30 hours while in the Gulf of Mexico, but weakened before landfall. The sustained winds reached 100 mph at landfall with gusts near 145 mph. Frederic moved inland near Mobile Bay and the Dauphin Island Bridge. The wind resulted in incredible damage to Mobile. Frederic was the first major hurricane to affect Mobile since 1926. Watch streaming video NewsChannel 5 reports from the aftermath of Frederic.

Between 1995-2005 there were seven hurricanes that had a significant impact on the Mobile Bay area. Thatt does not include Hurricane Cindy or Hurricane Isidore since these passed farther west.

1995, August 3rd
Hurricane Erin, Category Two. Hurricane Erin had winds of 100 mph at landfall, and it moved inland near Pensacola, FL. Hurricane Erin was the first of two local Hurricanes in 1995.

1995, October 4th
Hurricane Opal, Category Three. Hurricane winds were estimated near 115 mph at landfall, and Opal moved inland near Santa Rosa Island, FL. Hurricane Opal reached category four strength, rapidly intensifying from a category one hurricane in only 18 hours. Hurricane Opal attained category four status 200 miles south of Pensacola. Before landfall, Opal weakened to a category three, but still caused major damage in Pensacola. The storm surge reached 12-20 feet. The highest rain total near Pensacola in the Ellyson community reached 15.45 inches.

1997, July 19th
Hurricane Danny, Category One. Hurricane Danny had wind gusts reaching 80 mph at landfall as it crossed Mullet Point south of Point Clear in Baldwin County. Hurricane Danny then stalled over Mobile Bay and brought record flooding to south Alabama. Rain totals at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab reached 36.71 inches with 25.98 inches of that in seven hours.

1998, September 28th
Hurricane Georges, Strong Category Two. Hurricane Georges delivered sustained winds of 103 mph at landfall, and then it moved inland near Biloxi MS. Hurricane Georges produced 16.7 inches of rain in Pascagoula. The storm surge reached 12 feet near Fort Morgan, and Georges produced 25 foot waves in the Gulf of Mexico. Georges slowed in forward speed once it approached Alabama. This led to huge rain amounts. In Bay Minette, a rain total of nearly 30 inches was recorded.

2004, September 16th
Hurricane Ivan, Category Three. Hurricane Ivan had winds around 120 mph at landfall, and it moved inland near Gulf Shores. Ivan was the strongest Hurricane from Baldwin to Santa Rosa Counties in more than 100 years. 160 miles inland, near Demopolis, AL, a wind gust near 90 mph was recorded. Rain totals reached 15.75 inches in Pensacola, with a storm surge in Escambia Bay of 12 feet.

2005, July 10th
Hurricane Dennis, Category Three. Hurricane Dennis carried winds of 121 mph at landfall, as it moved inland near Navarre Beach. Dennis had an extremely small eye, and was only significant in a localized area. Dennis prompted a large scale evacuation as it  reached category four status in the Gulf of Mexico before it weakened near the central Gulf coast.

2005, August 29th
Hurricane Katrina, Category Three. Hurricane Katrina had winds at landfall estimated at 120 mph. It moved inland near Waveland MS. Hurricane Katrina was the costliest and one of the deadliest U.S. disasters. Hurricane Katrina produced a 27 foot storm surge in Hancock County, MS, and breached levees in New Orleans. The highest storm surge along Mobile Bay reached 12 feet at the USS Alabama along I-10. The death toll from Hurricane Katrina was over 1,800.

2005
The 2005 Hurricane Season in the Atlantic Ocean was unprecedented. According to the National Hurricane Center and NOAA these records were set...

* Named storms: 28; previous record: 21 in 1933
* Hurricanes: 15; previous record: 12 in 1969
* Major hurricanes hitting the U.S.: Four (Dennis, Katrina, Rita and Wilma); previous record: Three, most recently in 2004
* Hurricanes of Category 5 intensity (greater than 155 mph): Three (Katrina, Rita and Wilma); previous record: Two in 1960 and 1961

Check this extensive summary of each storm from the National Climatic Data Center. Also check the National Hurricane Center 2005 Season Summary and individual summaries here.

Letters of the Greek alphabet were used to name storms for the first time since storms were named in 1953. Tropical Storm Alpha and Hurricane Beta hit the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua, respectively. Tropical Storm Gamma brought deadly flooding to parts of Central America. Tropical Storm Delta largely stayed over open water then moved across the Canary Islands off the northwest coast of Africa. Tropical Storm Epsilon formed on November 29 in the central Atlantic and continued into December, eventually reaching hurricane status and then fading away. Tropical Storm Zeta tied for the latest forming storm on record when it was born in the eastern Atlantic on December 30. It lasted into January 2006.

See an animation of the entire 2005 hurricane season from NASA.

2004
There were 15 named tropical cyclones in the Atlantic basin in 2004. While a total of 15 named storms is close to typical, 2004 was a stand-out year in a not so positive way. Nine of the fifteen tropical storms became hurricanes. Of the nine hurricanes, six were category 3 or higher. Three hurricanes alone struck central Florida. It was an unusually active year, especially in August.

Ivan was memorable for the Mobile-Pensacola area since it was the strongest storm to strike in 25 years. Note the track of Ivan took it to the northeastern US and into the north Atlantic where it faded but a small fragment of what was Ivan looped southward in the Atlantic, back into the Gulf, and then regained enough circulation to be born again a couple of days later. What ended up in the Gulf the second time was not the same Ivan that moved through the first time! It was just a remnant. Jeanne was also notable due to its full loop in the Atlantic before striking Florida.

There were two tropical depressions that did not reach storm strength. Nine named tropical cyclones affected the United States with high winds...storm surge...and/or heavy rain.

2003
There were 16 named tropical cyclones in the Atlantic basin in 2003...of which seven became hurricanes. The first tropical storm was before the official season and the last two tropical storms were after the official season.  Seven hurricanes is close to the long-term average value of six...but both Fabian and Isabel were exceptionally long-lived and intense hurricanes. Fabian... Isabel... and Kate were major hurricanes...with wind speeds of 111 mph or higher...or category three or higher on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale. In addition...there were five tropical depressions that did not reach storm strength.

Six named tropical cyclones affected the United States...bringing high winds...storm surge...and/or heavy rain. Tropical Storm Bill made landfall in Louisiana...Claudette hit Texas as a category one hurricane near Matagorda Island...hurricane Erika made landfall in Mexico...but brought tropical storm conditions to south Texas... Grace made landfall in Texas as a weakening tropical storm... Tropical Storm Henri made landfall on the central Florida gulf coast as a tropical depression...and Isabel struck the mid-Atlantic coast with category two hurricane conditions and with record flood water levels in the upper Chesapeake Bay.

Elsewhere...Juan was the worst hurricane to hit Halifax, Nova Scotia in its modern history and Fabian was the most destructive hurricane to hit Bermuda in over 75 years. Read the full 2003 summary from the National Hurricane Center

2002
September, 2002 was a busy weather month along the gulf coast. Three tropical systems worried us. Tropical Storm Hanna. Hurricane Isidore. Hurricane Lili. They came back to back in September of 2002 but we got by without major injury or damage.

Dr. Bill Williams of the Coastal Weather Research Center said 2002 was probably the most active season that we had seen on the Gulf Coast since 1995 when Erin and Opal moved into northwest Florida. Six named storms visited the Gulf. That?s more than average. Most people along the Gulf Coast think of it as an unusual season because of the number of storms in the Gulf, but it turned out to be an average season for the entire Atlantic basin.

In total, there were fourteen tropical depressions and 12 of them became tropical storms. Out of the dozen tropical storms only 4 of them became hurricanes. Two of those hurricanes were in the Gulf and both were major.

Isidore was a category 3 approaching the Mississippi coast. It made landfall on September 26th, 2002. Isidore was a long track storm that moved through the Caribbean, onto the Yucatan Peninsula and then weakened to a tropical storm but left us with 8 to 12? of rain. A week later Lili became a category 4 with winds over 125mph. Lili started September 21st, in the central Atlantic. It moved through the Caribbean, into the Gulf and weakened a lot before landfall in Louisiana on October 3rd, 2002.

Do not forget Tropical Storm Hanna. That was our first system of 2002, making landfall on September 14th. It eroded beaches and produced flooding and some damage in south Mobile county. You can see the track below.

One other noteworthy Hurricane in 2002 was Kyle. It lasted 22 days, making it the third longest lasting tropical storm in the Atlantic. It started on September 20th and lasted until October 12th.