National Weather Service Morehead City & Wilmington NC
Hurricane Hazel 60th
Anniversary and 2014
Hurricane Outlook
Photos courtesy of Assoc. Press, East Carolina University
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
TS Hazel (70 mph) first
identified 55 miles southeast
of Barbados 0600 UTC Oct 5
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Cat. 3 Hazel (115 mph) takes lowlatitude track 0600 UTC Oct 7
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Cat. 4 Hazel (135 mph) passes 335 miles
south of Port-au-Prince 0000 UTC Oct 9
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Cat. 2 Hazel (100 mph) makes landfall in Haiti
killing 1000 and devastating the economy there
for several years 0600 UTC Oct 12
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Cat. 3 Hazel (115 mph) kills 6 as it moves across
Inagua in the Bahamas, but largely stays east of
the larger population areas 0600 UTC Oct 14
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Cat. 3 Hazel (120 mph) Hurricane Warning Issued
from Charleston to the Virginia Capes and New York
Regional WB Office phones to report additional
assistance to WB office in Wilmington 1600-1700
UTC Oct 14
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Cat. 4 Hazel (140 mph) Wrightsville Beach
begins evacuations 0500 UTC Oct 15
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Cat. 4 Hazel (135 mph) makes landfall at
Calabash, NC. Wind gust of 98 mph
recorded at ILM. Pressure of 938 mb
measured in Hazel’s eye by the fishing
vessel Judy Ninda 1600 UTC Oct 15
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Cat. 1 Hazel (85 mph) weakens as it moves
65 miles southwest of Richmond, VA
causing 85 mph gusts in LBT and breaking
three destroyers from their moorings in
ILM 1700-1800 UTC Oct 15
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Cat. 1 Hazel (80 mph) peak gust of 85 mph
recorded in Reading, PA, and Washington
Natl. Airport in Arlington, VA recorded a
98 mph gust 0000 UTC Oct 16
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Hazel remnants lifting quickly into Canada
causing significant flooding in the Toronto
area: 50 bridges destroyed, highways
washed away, railroads destroyed, and 81
deaths 0400 UTC Oct 16
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Population shift:
Ie. Brunswick County 19k people in
1950, as of 2010 census 107k
people in the county
Brunswick County Impacts
-352 out of 357 homes on Long Beach were destroyed
-All 200 houses on Holden Beach were destroyed
-$5 million in damage (1954 dollars) to Southport
-20 ft grassy dunes were leveled to flat areas of sand
-No houses remained in Ocean Isle Beach
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Source: NHC
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Source: NHC
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Source: NHC
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Bertha ‘96
Dennis ‘99
Fran ‘96
Bonnie ‘98
Floyd ‘99
Irene ‘99
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Silver lining to all the hurricanes in the 50s????
A series of hurricanes that impacted North Carolina – instituting building codes
1954 Hurricanes
Hazel
Edna
Carol
Hurricanes 1950-1960
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
NC has the second oldest hurricane building codes in the Nation, following Dade County FL.
Hurricane Hazel 60th Anniversary and 2014 Hurricane Outlook
- Hazel Anniversary Website
- Hazel articles in NC Sea Grant Coast Watch
magazine
- Twitter storyline account of the storm beginning Oct 5 (#hurricanehazel60th)
- Series of Hazel Town Hall meetings from northeast SC into eastern NC with media and
EM partners
- Multitude of social media products
- Coastal Services Center Hurricane Hazel storyline map via Google Earth + historical
track inundation
Technological Advances Since Hurricane Hazel
1954 Technology
•
Radiosonde
•
Aircraft Recon
•
Ship and Land Based
Reports
•
No Satellite
•
No Radar
•
No Surge Models
Hazel Surface Charts Across NC
Hazel Surge Damage Swansboro
Hazel Surge Morehead City
Hazel Surge Damage Beaufort
What If’s?
Worst Case CAT 4 Inundation for the Pamlico Basin
Should We Breathe a Sigh of Relief?
Major Hurricanes in the 1990’s
Low Frequency/High Impact Seasons
1992 TC Tracks
1993 TC Tracks
Remember, it only takes one. Andrew and Emily
occurred in below average, weak El Nino years.
Andrew led to $25 billion in damage and was directly
responsible for 26 deaths.
Questions/Comments