Recap of the 2008 Hurricane Season for the Tropical Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico and The Caribbean Sea
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2008 Atlantic Hurricane Season Recap
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2008 was the first year since records began being kept in 1851 to feature major hurricanes (111 mph or greater winds) in five consecutive months. The season began with Arthur, a tropical storm that formed even before the June 1st official start of the season and closed with Paloma, the second-most powerful hurricane ever recorded in November.
Strength and Track of 2008 Atlantic Basin Storms
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Three major hurricanes, Gustav, Ike and Paloma ravaged Cuba. Haiti was devastated by four storms during August and September, resulting in more than 800 deaths, 530 of those deaths blamed on hurricane Hanna. Preliminary estimated losses around the region resulting from this very active 2008 Hurricane Season is of the order of US $54 billion.
Northern Central America including Belize felt the ravages of both the early-season tropical storm Arthur and late-season Tropical Depression 16. Tropical Storm Arthur evolved from the residual instability associated with the remnant low that was once eastern Pacific Tropical Storm Alma, on May 31, 2008. The center of the disturbance was located just offshore NE Belize and intensified into a tropical storm as it drifted inland over northern Belize and southern Yucatan.
By dawn of June 1, 2008, Arthur was weakening to a remnant low over SE Mexico. However, the system produced torrential rains across Belize during the subsequent three days, which resulted in flooding over the Orange Walk and Corozal districts at first, then the devastating flashfloods in the North Stann Creek and Sittee River watersheds of the Stann Creek Districts during the early morning of June 2, 2008. Five persons lost their lives to the flashfloods in the Middlesex and Hope Creek areas of the lower Stann Creek Valley. The losses were estimated at about BZ $78 million.
Tropical Depression 16 formed from an area of disturbed weather some 60 miles off the NE coast of Nicaragua on October 13, 2008. It drifted WNW just offshore the coast of NE Honduras during the next two days and then inland over the NE coast of Honduras on the morning of October 15, 2008. As the system drifted overland and interacted with the rugged terrain, it weakened to a remnant low and moved on a more westerly direction, reaching the western border between Honduras and Guatemala by October 16, 2008. During its odyssey overland the disturbance produced copious rainfall of the order of 21 inches over Baldy Beacon and 18 inches over Savannah during the period October 13-20, 2008.
Accumulated rainfall in excess of 20 inches was also recorded in many localities over western Honduras, central and northern Guatemala and SE Mexico. This resulted in extreme, widespread floods over the region. In Belize the Mopan, Macal, Belize, Rio Hondo and New Rivers all rose to near the record-setting, hurricane Keith stage. More than 110 communities consisting of over 16,400 persons were directly impacted by the floods in Belize. Five persons are known to have drowned during the floods; two on the Sittee River near the Kendal bridge crossing, and three around the border village of Arenal on the Mopan River.
Notable records for 2008 Atlantic Hurricane Season
- First tropical storm to form over land (Arthur)
- Fourth costliest hurricane season on record (a total of $54 basin wide with $21 billion dollars in damage in the USA, according to ISO's Property Claim Services)
- First time major hurricanes have been observed in five separate months (Bertha, Gustav, Ike, Omar, Paloma occurred in July, August, September, October, and November, respectively)
- First time six consecutive storms made U.S. landfall (Dolly, Edouard, Fay, Gustav, Hanna, and Ike)
- First time three major hurricanes have hit Cuba (Gustav, Ike, Paloma)
- Costliest hurricane in Texas history (Ike, $16.2 billion)
- Second deadliest U.S. hurricane since 1972, and 26th deadliest in history (Ike, with 82 dead)
- Highest wind gust ever measured in a hurricane over land (Gustav, 212 mph in Pinar del Rio, Cuba)
- First storm ever to make four landfalls in one state (Fay, in Florida)
- Second strongest November hurricane (Paloma, 145 mph winds)
- Smallest tropical cyclone on record (Marco)
- Longest-lived July hurricane on record, longest-lived hurricane so early in the season, longest-lived tropical storm in July and so early in the season (Bertha, which was a hurricane 7.75 days, eclipsing the previous record of 7 days held by Hurricane Emily of 2005. Bertha was at tropical storm strength for 17.25 days)
- Farthest east forming tropical storm and hurricane for so early in the season (Bertha)