1858 San Diego Hurricane
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| Category 1 hurricane (SSHS) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Formed | September 1858 | |
| Dissipated | October 2, 1858 | |
| Highest winds |
|
|
| Lowest pressure | ≤994 mbar[1] | |
| Damage | Unknown | |
| Fatalities | unknown | |
| Areas affected |
Extreme Southern California, northwestern Mexico | |
| Part of the pre-1900 Pacific hurricane seasons |
||
The 1858 San Diego Hurricane was a very rare California hurricane. It is the only known tropical cyclone to impact California as a hurricane, although other systems impacted California as tropical storms.
Contents |
[edit] Storm history
Sometime in September, a hurricane formed in the East Pacific Ocean. Unlike most east Pacific storms, this one moved towards the north. On October 2, it neared Southern California while weakening and being sheared. It just missed making landfall, as it turned to the northwest. It approached Santa Catalina Island in the Channel Islands and dissipated. There is some uncertainty to this reconstructed path.[1]
[edit] Impact
In San Diego, the rain was very heavy, and the property damage was great, many homes lost their roofs, while a few homes even collapsed. In addition, trees were uprooted, and fences destroyed. A recently constructed windmill was also blown away completely. Three schooners, the Plutus, the Lovely Flora, and the X.L. were blown ashore, though only the X.L. suffered major damage.[1]
Rainfall in San Pedro was also heavy there, but high winds were not reported. Parts of the embankment in the city were washed away, causing only around $100 (1858 USD) in damage. The yacht, Medora, was washed ashore. Many reports claimed that the yacht was unrepairable, but it was later claimed that the damage wasn't actually that great and could be repaired. A barge was destroyed, as was a large portion of the San Pedro wharf.[1]
Monte was buffeted by high winds, damage corn crops and trees. Los Angeles and Visila noted large amounts of rain, as much as 7 inches, but low winds.[1]
In an estimate by Dr. Michael Chenoweth and Dr. Christopher Landsea, if the storm would hit today, it would cause around $500 million dollars in damage.[2]
[edit] Rediscovery
Using newspaper accounts, two researchers with NOAA, Christopher Landsea and Michael Chenoweth, reconstructed this hurricane. Its strong winds were mentioned in the folklore of the region.
