1974 Pacific typhoon season
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 1974 Pacific typhoon season has no official bounds; it ran year-round in 1974, but most tropical cyclones tend to form in the northwestern Pacific Ocean between June and December. These dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones form in the northwestern Pacific Ocean.
The scope of this article is limited to the Pacific Ocean, north of the equator and west of the international date line. Storms that form east of the date line and north of the equator are called hurricanes; see 1974 Pacific hurricane season. Tropical Storms formed in the entire west pacific basin were assigned a name by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. Tropical depressions in this basin have the "W" suffix added to their number. Tropical depressions that enter or form in the Philippine area of responsibility are assigned a name by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration or PAGASA. This can often result in the same storm having two names.
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[edit] Storms
35 tropical depressions formed this year in the Western Pacific, of which 32 became tropical storms. 16 storms reached typhoon intensity, of which none reached super typhoon strength.
[edit] Typhoon Dinah
Dinah, which developed on June 7, hit Luzon on the 10th as an 80 mph typhoon. It continued northwestward, hit Hainan Island, crossed the Gulf of Tonkin, and dissipated over Vietnam. Dinah caused 73 casualties (with 33 missing), with $3 million in crop damage (1974 USD).
[edit] Typhoon Gilda
When Tropical Storm Gilda, having weakened from a peak of 100 mph winds, crossed between Japan and South Korea in early July, it brought torrential rains and mudslides, killing 128 people (with 26 missing) and causing damage estimated at $1.5 billion (1974 USD).
[edit] Typhoon Ivy
66 people were killed with Typhoon Ivy hit Luzon on July 20. It continued northwestward, and hit southeastern China 2 days later.
[edit] Typhoon Mary
The monsoon trough spawned a tropical depression on August 10. It tracked to the northeast, then turned to the northwest where it became a tropical storm on the 11th. Mary's appearance resembled an extratropical cyclone due to vertical shear, and as the ridge built over Japan, Mary turned more to the west. Conditions were favorable enough for Mary to reach typhoon strength on the 18th, but it weakened to a tropical storm before hitting northeastern China on the 19th. A high pressure system over China forced now Tropical Depression Mary to the southeast, where it restrengthened into a tropical storm on the 24th. The storm turned to the northeast, briefly becoming a typhoon again on the 25th before weakening. Mary hit Japan on the 26th, and dissipated shortly thereafter. 3 lives were lost in Mary's path, with moderate damage occurring.
[edit] Typhoon Bess
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| Bess satellite image and storm track. | |
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- Main article: Typhoon Bess (1974)
Typhoon Bess crossed northern Luzon on October 10, crossed the South China Sea, and hit Hainan Island on the 13th. Bess continued westward, and dissipated over Vietnam on the 14th. The storm dumped heavy rains on its path, causing 26 deaths (with 3 missing) and $9.2 million (1974 USD) in damage. The name Bess was retired after this season.
[edit] Typhoon Carmen
Typhoon Carmen hit Luzon on October 16, just days after Bess hit. It continued northwestward, made landfall on southeastern China, turned south, and dissipated on the 20th. Carmen storm caused 25 fatalities, with damage estimated at $13 million (1974 USD).
[edit] Typhoon Elaine
23 casualties and $21 million in damage can be attributed to 110 mph Typhoon Elaine hitting northern Luzon on October 27.
[edit] Typhoon Irma
The last of the year's 8 typhoons to hit the Philippines made landfall on November 28 as a 100 mph typhoon. Irma, once a 135 mph typhoon, weakened over the islands and restrengthened into a typhoon in the South China Sea. It turned northward, and hit southern China as a weakening tropical storm on December 2, the latest date for a Chinese tropical storm landfall. Irma killed 11 people, and caused $7.3 million in damage (1974 USD).
[edit] 1974 storm names
Western North Pacific tropical cyclones were named by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. The first storm of 1974 was named Wanda and the final one was named Kit. The name Bess was removed from the list after this year.
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One Central Pacific system developed, Hurricane Olive. The policy at the time was to use Western Pacific names the Central Pacific.
