CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Hurricane season may be winding down but October is still historically responsible for over 20% of the tropical storms and hurricanes in an average hurricane season.
Dating back to the 1800s, there have been 172 tropical storms and 252 hurricanes in October. Eight of those storms have reached the strongest strength: Category 5 with sustained winds over 157 mph.
Let's raise our Weather IQ and learn about some of the most infamous hurricanes to ever occur in the month of October.
1954 Hurricane Hazel
Hurricane Hazel made landfall as a strong Category 4 between North and South Carolina on October 15, 1954. Hazel reached peak winds of 140 mph. The storm surge created was the worst ever recorded at the time in North Carolina.
1998 Hurricane Mitch
Mitch was the deadliest October hurricane and ranks as one of the all-time deadliest dating back to 1780. Over 20% of Honduras’s population was left homeless as a result of the storm. Honduras and Nicaragua saw floods and devastating land slides taking the lives of over 19,000 people. Mitch also ranks in the top 10 strongest hurricanes reaching peak sustained winds of 180 mph.
2005 Hurricane Wilma
Not only is Wilma the strongest October hurricane reaching a peak of 185 mph, but the 2005 storm holds the record for the lowest barometric pressure ever recorded in the Atlantic. It also holds the record for the fastest 24-hour intensification rate. Wilma caused over $22.7 billion worth of damage, which at the time ranked as one of the top 10 costliest hurricanes on record.
2016 Hurricane Matthew
Hurricane Matthew made a slow landfall in South Carolina as a weak Category 1 hurricane but Matthew is better known for its devasting flooding. NOAA deemed Matthew as a 1 in a 1,000-year flood event. However two years later, the same area had another 1,000-year flood event caused by Hurricane Florence.
2018 Hurricane Michael
Michael was only the fourth Category 5 hurricane to ever make landfall in the United States. On Oct. 10, Michael produced catastrophic damage in both Mexico Beach and Panama City, Florida. The peak estimated sustained winds were 160 mph. The strongest winds for a U.S. landfall since Hurricane Andrew in 1992.
Other powerful October storms
Superstorm Sandy, Hurricane Opal, Hurricane Delta, and Hurricane Zeta are also on the list of strong October storms.