540 ABNT30 KNHC 011515 COR TWSAT MONTHLY TROPICAL WEATHER SUMMARY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL 8 AM EDT THU OCT 01 1998 ...CORRECTION TO SUMMARY TABLE - HURRICANE EARL MAX WIND... FOR THE NORTH ATLANTIC...CARIBBEAN SEA AND THE GULF OF MEXICO... THE ATLANTIC TROPICAL BASIN WAS VERY ACTIVE DURING SEPTEMBER... IN A REMARKABLE SPAN OF 35 DAYS...STARTING ON THE 19TH OF AUGUST AND ENDING THE 23RD OF SEPTEMBER...10 NAMED TROPICAL CYCLONES FORMED AND FOUR OF THEM MADE LANDFALL IN THE UNITED STATES. IN ADDITION... JEANNE AND KARL AFFECTED THE CAPE VERDE ISLANDS AND BERMUDA... RESPECTIVELY...WHILE THREE OTHERS PASSED NEAR OR OVER THE AZORES. IN FACT...ON THE 25TH OF THE MONTH THERE WERE FOUR HURRICANES... GEORGES... IVAN...JEANNE...AND KARL IN PROGRESS AT THE SAME TIME. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME SUCH AN EVENT OCCURRED THIS CENTURY. **************************************************************** DANIELLE FORMED OVER THE CENTRAL TROPICAL ATLANTIC OCEAN ON 24 AUGUST...INTENSIFIED TO A TROPICAL STORM LATER THAT SAME DAY...AND BECAME A HURRICANE ON THE 25TH. IT MOVED ON A WEST-NORTHWEST TRACK FOR THE NEXT 5 DAYS. AFTER PASSING A COUPLE HUNDRED MILES NORTHEAST OF THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS...DANIELLE TURNED TO THE NORTH ON 31 AUGUST... AND BY THE 1ST OF SEPTEMBER WAS HEADED NORTHEASTWARD AND OUT TO SEA. IT BECAME EXTRATROPICAL LATE ON 3 SEPTEMBER A COUPLE HUNDRED MILES SOUTHEAST OF CAPE RACE NEWFOUNDLAND. THE EXTRATROPICAL LOW MOVED EASTWARD ACROSS THE NORTH ATLANTIC...THEN TURNED NORTHWARD OVER THE NORTHEAST ATLANTIC...LASHING THE WESTERN PART OF GREAT BRITAIN ON THE 6TH. THE SYSTEM WEAKENED AND BECAME INDISTINCT THEREAFTER. EARL FORMED IN THE GULF OF MEXICO ABOUT 575 SOUTH-SOUTHWEST OF NEW ORLEANS ON 31 AUGUST. IT GRADUALLY INTENSIFIED TO CATEGORY 2 ON THE SAFFIR-SIMPSON HURRICANE SCALE WHILE MOVING NORTH AND NORTHEAST...BUT MADE LANDFALL AS A CATEGORY 1 HURRICANE NEAR PANAMA CITY FLORIDA DURING THE EARLY MORNING OF 3 SEPTEMBER. EARL PRODUCED A MAXIMUM ESTIMATED STORM SURGE OF 8 FEET IN FRANKLIN, WAKULLA AND TAYLOR COUNTIES AND ABOUT 12 INCHES OF RAIN IN PANAMA CITY FLORIDA. FRANCES FORMED IN THE GULF OF MEXICO... ABOUT 220 MILES SOUTHEAST OF CORPUS CHRISTI TEXAS ON THE 8TH AND REACHED TROPICAL STORM STATUS THE NEXT DAY. FRANCES MOVED SLOWLY ON A GENERAL NORTHWESTERLY TRACK AND MADE LANDFALL JUST TO THE NORTHEAST OF PORT ARANSAS TEXAS AS A 65 MPH TROPICAL STORM. FRANCES DRENCHED PORTIONS OF TEXAS AND LOUISIANA. GEORGES FORMED IN THE FAR EASTERN ATLANTIC FROM A TROPICAL WAVE EARLY ON THE 15TH. THE SYSTEM WAS UPGRADED TO A TROPICAL STORM ON THE MORNING OF THE 16TH. BY LATE AFTERNOON ON THE 17TH... SATELLITE IMAGERY INDICATED THAT GEORGES DEVELOPED AN EYE AND WAS UPGRADED TO HURRICANE STATUS. GEORGES MOVED ON A GENERAL WEST TO WEST-NORTHWEST COURSE AT 15 TO 20 MPH FOR THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS. DURING THIS PERIOD...GEORGES IS ESTIMATED TO HAVE REACHED A PEAK INTENSITY OF 150 MPH...CATEGORY 4 ...AND A MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE OF 938 MB ON THE EVENING OF THE 19TH WHILE LOCATED ABOUT 420 MILES EAST OF GUADELOUPE IN THE LESSER ANTILLES. GEORGES FIRST OF MANY LANDFALLS OCCURRED AT ANTIGUA IN THE LEEWARD ISLANDS LATE ON THE 20TH. AFTER MOVING NEAR OR OVER OTHER ISLANDS OF THE NORTHEAST CARIBBEAN INCLUDING THE U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS...IT THEN HIT PUERTO RICO ON THE EVENING OF THE 21ST WITH ESTIMATED MAXIMUM WINDS OF 115 MPH...CATEGORY 3. GEORGES WEAKENED VERY LITTLE WHILE OVER PUERTO RICO AND WAS EVEN STRONGER WHEN IT MADE LANDFALL IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC ON THE AFTERNOON OF THE 22ND WITH ESTIMATED MAXIMUM WINDS OF 120 MPH...ALSO CATEGORY 3. GEORGES WEAKENED AFTER CROSSING THE MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN OF HISPANIOLA AND MADE LANDFALL IN EASTERN CUBA ON THE AFTERNOON OF THE 23RD WITH ESTIMATED MAXIMUM WINDS OF 75 MPH...CATEGORY 1. THE HURRICANE CONTINUED ALONG THE NORTHERN COAST OF CUBA FOR MOST OF THE 24TH. THEREAFTER...GEORGES MOVED INTO THE FLORIDA STRAITS EARLY ON THE 25TH AND RE-INTENSIFIED MAKING LANDFALL NEAR KEY WEST FLORIDA ON MID-MORNING OF THE 25TH WITH ESTIMATED MAXIMUM WINDS OF 105 MPH.. CATEGORY 2. GEORGES CONTINUED ON A GENERAL WEST-NORTHWEST TO NORTHWEST TRACK ON THE 26TH AND 27TH...TURNING TO A NORTH-NORTHWEST HEADING AND GRADUALLY SLOWING DOWN AS IT APPROACHED THE COAST OF THE CENTRAL GULF OF MEXICO. GEORGES MADE ITS FINAL LANDFALL NEAR BILOXI MISSISSIPPI AS A CATEGORY 2 HURRICANE. THEN...GEORGES MEANDERED AND WEAKENED TO A TROPICAL STORM ON THE AFTERNOON OF THE 28TH. GEORGES WAS DOWNGRADED TO A TROPICAL DEPRESSION BY MID-MORNING ON THE 29TH WHILE LOCATED ABOUT 35 MILES NORTH-NORTHEAST OF MOBILE ALABAMA. THE REMNANT WEAK CIRCULATION CENTER IS CURRENTLY NEAR THE GEORGIA COAST. HERMINE DEVELOPED FROM AN AREA OF LOW PRESSURE LOCATED OVER THE NORTHWESTERN CARIBBEAN. IT MOVED INTO THE GULF OF MEXICO AND BECAME A TROPICAL DEPRESSION ON THE 17TH. THE DEPRESSION MEANDERED OVER THE CENTRAL GULF FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS AND REACHED TROPICAL STORM STATUS ON THE 19TH WHEN LOCATED ABOUT 150 MILES SOUTH-SOUTHWEST OF NEW ORLEANS. HERMINE MOVE INLAND NEAR COCODRIE LOUISIANA WITH 40 TO 45 MPH WINDS EARLY ON THE 20TH PRODUCING TORRENTIAL RAINS. IT THEN GRADUALLY WEAKENED. IVAN DEVELOPED ON THE 20TH FROM A TROPICAL WAVE LOCATED A FEW HUNDRED MILES TO THE SOUTHWEST OF THE CAPE VERDE ISLANDS. IT REMAINED OVER THE EASTERN ATLANTIC...MOVING TOWARD THE NORTH TO NORTHWEST FOR MOST OF ITS ONE-WEEK LIFETIME. THE CYCLONES INITIAL MOTION AND DEVELOPMENT WERE INFLUENCED BY AN UPPER-LEVEL LOW TO THE SOUTHWEST. ASSOCIATED SHEARING ALLOWED FOR ONLY RATHER SLOW STRENGTHENING AFTER IVAN BECAME A TROPICAL STORM EARLY ON THE 21ST. WHEN THE SHEARING DECREASED ON THE 23RD...AN EYE APPEARED AND IVAN BECAME A HURRICANE. IVAN REACHED ITS PEAK INTENSITY...WITH 90 MPH WINDS...LATE ON THE 25TH. THE EYE DISAPPEARED AND IVAN BECAME EXTRATROPICAL THE FOLLOWING DAY WHILE PASSING OVER PROGRESSIVELY COOLER WATERS ABOUT 150 MILES TO THE NORTH OF THE AZORES ISLANDS. JEANNE BECAME A TROPICAL STORM NOT FAR OFF THE WEST COAST OF AFRICA ON THE 21ST AND INTENSIFIED TO A HURRICANE THE FOLLOWING DAY. JEANNE WAS ONLY THE THIRD TROPICAL STORM THIS CENTURY TO FORM SO FAR EAST IN THE ATLANTIC. IT MOVED WEST-NORTHWESTWARD FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS...REACHING A PEAK INTENSITY OF 105 MPH ON THE 24TH WHILE LOCATED ABOUT 600 MILES WEST OF THE CAPE VERDE ISLANDS. THE HURRICANE TURNED TOWARD THE NORTH OVER THE EAST-CENTRAL ATLANTIC LATE ON THE 26TH...THEN TOWARD THE NORTHEAST...AND EVENTUALLY EAST-NORTHEAST ON THE 29TH WHILE WEAKENING TO A TROPICAL STORM. IT WEAKENED BELOW STORM STRENGTH IN THE VICINITY OF THE AZORES AND LOST ITS TROPICAL CHARACTERISTICS LATE ON THE 30TH. HURRICANE KARL DEVELOPED FROM A SMALL LOW PRESSURE AREA THAT WAS TRACKED FROM THE COAST OF THE CAROLINAS. IT BECAME A TROPICAL DEPRESSION ON THE 23RD OF SEPTEMBER ABOUT 200 MILES EAST-NORTHEAST OF BERMUDA. KARL MOVED SOUTHEASTWARD AND THEN NORTHEASTWARD AND BECAME A 105 MPH HURRICANE LATE ON THE 26TH. IT CONTINUED MOVING TOWARD THE NORTHEAST OVER COOLER WATERS AND BECAME EXTRATROPICAL ON THE 28TH WHILE MOVING NORTH OF THE AZORES. SUMMARY TABLE... NAME DATES WIND DEATHS U.S. DAMAGE ------------ ----- ---- ------ ---------- DANIELLE 24 AUG - 3 SEP 105 0 EARL 31 AUG - 3 SEP 100 3 * FRANCES 8 SEP - 13 SEP 65 * GEORGES 15 SEP - 29 SEP 150 300+ * HERMINE 17 SEP - 20 SEP 45 * IVAN 20 SEP - 27 SEP 90 0 JEANNE 21 SEP - 30 SEP 105 0 KARL 23 SEP - 28 SEP 105 0 * - PRELIMINARY ESTIMATES HAVE NOT BEEN FINALIZED AT THIS TIME AVILA/GUINEY/PASCH/MAYFIELD/LAWRENCE/RAPPAPORT