STORM HISTORY FOR COLLIER COUNTY In 1960, when hurricane 'Donna' struck, there were approximately 15,500 people living full time in Collier County. Today there are more than 330,000 residents, most of whom have never been through a severe land-falling hurricane, even though they lived here in the 2004 hurricane season. After all, how often is Collier County struck by tropical weather? Records kept by the National Weather Service date back to 1851. In that time 74 tropical storms and hurricanes have passed within 75 nautical miles of Naples or one nearly every 2.2 years! Of those, 44 (more than half) have been tropical storms with winds of less than 74 miles per hour. That also means that 30 have been hurricanes, or one about every 5.4 years! Ten hurricanes were category three and seven were category four hurricanes. Although Hurricane Andrew ( 92) was a Category Five, its effect on us was that of no more than a Category Four storm. Seventeen major hurricanes in 162 years average out to one every 9.5 years! Those numbers may be a little frightening to the relative newcomer. When we follow tropical systems we track the "center" of the storm, the point where the lowest barometric pressure is reported. Tropical storms and hurricanes are all unique, with poorly defined broad centers in some events, and tightly wound well-defined eyes in others. Tropical storm force wind fields may extend from 35 to 250 miles from the center. Hurricane force winds may range from non-existent to well over a hundred miles from the center. The data from the weather service looks at how close the "center" passed, and the reported wind speeds in the Naples area. The details are interesting: Collier County Tropical Cyclones: May to mid-july: Mostly Caribbean origination, usually land-falling. Mid-July through mid-october: Atlantic originations, usually exiting, but not always! Last printed 5/7/2014 10:35:00 AM 1
Mid-October through December: Caribbean and Gulf originations, mostly land-falling. (Center Less Than 20 Nautical Miles From Naples) Tropical storms: 1861, 1878, 1891, 1899, 1925, 1932, 1936, 1953, 1969 (Jenny), 1985 (Bob), 1994 (Gordon), 1998 (Mitch), 1999 (Harvey), 2008 (Fay) Hurricanes: 1870, 1894, 1910, 1926, 1941, 1947, 1960 (Donna), 2005 (Wilma) ('Andrew' passed 35 miles south of Naples in 1992) (Winds Greater Than 96 mph (Category 2+ Hurricane) within 75 nautical miles of Naples 1865 (104 mph), 1873 (115 mph), 1876 (104 mph), 1888 (98 mph), 1894 (96 mph), 1910 (121 mph), 1924 (96 mph), 1926 (120 mph.), 1929 (106 mph), 1935 (120 mph.), 1941 (112 mph), 1944 (100 mph), 1945 (130 mph), 1946 (100 mph), 1947 (120 mph), 1948 (121 mph), 1960 (Donna, 138 mph), 1964 (Isbell, 115 mph), 1965 (Betsy, 115 mph), 1966 (Alma, 115 mph), 1992 (133 mph, Andrew's winds were less than 95 mph at Naples, but higher on Marco and in Everglades City), 2004 (Charley, 115 mph) & 2005 (Wilma, 121 mph) Wind Blown Facts! Things you may not have known about tropical storms and hurricanes in Collier County. The first storm of record to hit Naples! The earliest tropical system to ever strike Collier County was a No Name Tropical Storm on November 1, 1861. This storm formed in the Gulf on the morning of the first and passed through Naples that afternoon, headed to the northeast at 20 miles per hour. Naples felt winds of 65 miles per hour. But it s not the season! The latest tropical system to ever affect Collier County was a tropical storm on December 1, 1925. The center missed Naples by 67 nautical miles as the storm raced off toward the northeast at 25 miles per hour. Still, winds of 75 miles per hour swept through the area. This storm also showed that we could be hit even in a quiet year. The December storm was only the second of the year! The earliest storm, a No Name one, affected Naples on February 3, 1952. Its winds were 48 miles per hour and the closest it got to Naples was 56 nautical miles. Last printed 5/7/2014 10:35:00 AM 2
Oh No! Not AGAIN! Contrary to legend, lightning can strike twice in the same place (and often does). So too can tropical weather. Five times in history two storms have affected Collier County in the same year: Two tropical storms passed within 25 miles of Naples on June 15 and July 29, 1936. Nine years later (1945) saw a tropical storm on September 4 and a major hurricane (111 mph winds) 12 days later. Tropical storms again hit on August 29 and October 9, 1953, both passing less than 50 miles from Naples. In September 1998, Collier County evacuated south of US 41 for Hurricane 'Georges', but the storm veered westward at the last minute, and passed the county by. In November, Tropical Storm 'Mitch' (the leftovers of the deadly Caribbean Category 5 super hurricane) passed directly over Naples. In 1999, on September 21 st, Tropical Storm Harvey passed over Marco Island and Naples heading east; producing 58 mph winds. It was more of a rain event causing flooded streets and cars, than a wind event. Then on October 15 th Hurricane Irene hit Collier County from the south, heading east-northeast, with 75 mph winds. Luckily, her effects were minor because we were on the dry-side of the system. Anyone for a "hat-trick?" In ice hockey, scoring three goals in a game is a "hat trick." Collier County saw a tropical weather "hat trick" in 1891! In 1891, on August 25, a tropical storm passing 17 miles from Naples spread 55 mile per hour winds over the area. Then the next set came on October 7, a storm brought 47 mph winds as it passed within 40 miles of Naples. Just two days later (October 9) the third storm in six weeks passed within 57 miles of Naples and 52 mph winds passed through the area! ( and you thought there wasn't a lot of tropical activity in the Naples area...) What's that name again? Hurricanes and Tropical Storms were not named until 1950, and it didn't take long for a named storm to affect Collier County. Hurricane "Easy" passed by 54 miles offshore (101 mph winds at Naples) on September 3. "Easy" is well remembered for the double loop it did in the Gulf a couple of days later, before going inland in the Tampa Bay area. They went that-a-way! Usually, tropical weather moves through our area headed toward the northeast or northwest. Looking at a compass dial, one storm was moving due north as it passed (Tropical storm "Dennis," which made landfall near Everglades City on August Last printed 5/7/2014 10:35:00 AM 3
17, 1981). The most common direction of travel was toward the north and east, with 37 storms passing headed between 0 and 90 degrees. Just two passed moving south of east, one south of west, two directly to the west and 30 between 271 and 359 degrees. Major hurricanes usually come from the east. Don't Threaten Me! Up to this point, while this study deals with the 74 tropical cyclones that have passed within 75 nautical miles of Naples, it doesn't discuss those that have been close enough to offer a serious threat to the area, even requiring evacuation and shelter openings before the storm moved away (Examples: "David" (1979) and Alberto" (1982)). Nor does it deal with the extra-tropical storms, the so-called "no name" storms such as the ones in June of 1982 and March of 1993. Neither of these storms, nor Tropical Storm "Jerry" in 1995 was closer to Naples than 250 miles! Given the actual strikes and the close call threats, Collier County has had to deal with a tropical threat about every two years. In September 1998, Collier County evacuated the areas south of US-41 for Hurricane Georges, but the storm veered westward at the last minute and passed the county by. Another close call came in 2004 with Category 5 Hurricane Ivan, south of Cuba and aiming directly for Collier County. Because of the size and intensity of the storm Collier County have to prepare and react as if it were to be hit. Luckily Hurricane Ivan drifted to the west and passed into the Gulf at the west end of Cuba missing Collier County altogether, except for the slight storm surge effects as it passed. Watch out for that Warning! The National Hurricane Center issues tropical storm and hurricane watches and warnings. A WATCH is issued 48 hours in advance of the onset of tropicalstorm-force winds. A WARNING is issued 36 hours in advance of the onset of tropicalstorm-force winds. An EXTREME WIND WARNING is issued when extreme sustained winds of a major hurricane (115 mph or greater), usually associated with the eyewall, are expected to begin within an hour. It is virtually impossible for a hurricane to sneak up on us and strike with no warning, but it's not unheard of for us to miss the watch phase and go directly to a warning as some systems can develop quickly and close by. Be ready to move quickly. In the last few years, there was no time for a watch with "Alberto" (1982), "Keith" (1988), or "Marco" (1990). Monitor the tropics through local radio and television, the Collier County Emergency Management Tropical Weather Page, NOAA Weather Radio on 162.525 (Naples), and "The Weather Channel" at 50 minutes after the hour from June through November. Consult your cable operator for channel information. Last printed 5/7/2014 10:35:00 AM 4
1851-2013 Collier County Storms By Month Category Where They Originate From (A=Atlantic C = Caribbean G=Gulf) TS Cat 1 Cat 2 Cat 3 Cat 4 Cat 5 Total A C G A C G A C G A C G A C G A C G February 1 1 May 1 1 2 June 3 1 4 July 3 1 3 6 August 10 0 2 1 1 1 1 16 September 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 5 14 October 3 8 2 4 2 2 3 1 1 26 November 2 1 1 4 December 1 1 TOTAL 16 17 11 4 5 2 2 4 5 1 6 1 74 By Storm = 44 9 4 10 7-0- 74 Last printed 5/7/2014 10:35:00 AM 5