The 2007 Atlantic hurricane season was an active Atlantic hurricane season that produced 17 tropical cyclones. It officially started on June 1 and officially ended on November 30, dates that conventionally delimit the period during which most tropical cyclones form in the Atlantic Ocean. The first tropical cyclone, Subtropical Storm Andrea developed on May 9, while the last storm, Tropical Storm Olga, dissipated on December 13.
During the year, a total of 17 tropical cyclones, 15 tropical storms, 6 hurricanes and 2 major hurricanes formed. The most intense hurricane, Dean, tied for the seventh most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded as well as the third most intense Atlantic hurricane at landfall. The season was one of only four on record for the Atlantic with more than one Category 5 storm. It was the second on record in which an Atlantic hurricane, Felix, and an eastern Pacific hurricane, Henriette, made landfall on the same day. September had a record-tying eight storms, although the strengths and durations of most of the storms were low. Aside from Dean and Felix, none of the storms exceeded Category 1 intensity.[1]
| Subtropical storm (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | May 9 – May 11 | ||
| Intensity | 95 km/h (60 mph) (1-min), 1001 hPa (mbar) | ||
A large extratropical cyclone that formed off the mid-Atlantic coast on May 6 deepened steadily along a cold front that pushed through Florida. When the system lost most of its baroclinic support, development ceased until its low moved into warmer waters near the Bahamas. However, interaction between the low and a strong high-pressure system to the north generated hurricane-force winds in the system. Decreasing vertical wind shear allowed the storm to generate deeper convection much closer to the center.[2] By May 9 the previously extratropical cyclone had transformed into Subtropical Storm Andrea while located about 140 miles (225 km) southeast of Savannah, Georgia.[3]
Tropical storm watches were immediately issued for parts of coastal Georgia and Florida, though all were later dropped.[2] Andrea was the first named storm to form in May since Arlene in 1981, and the first pre-season storm since Ana in April 2003.[4] Andrea began its subtropical phase as it was weakening, and continued this deterioration as it moved southward into an environment with higher wind shear. By May 11, Andrea had lost all significant convection and degenerated into a remnant low. Though it produced intermittent bursts of convection, Andrea's chance of regeneration was extinguished when an advancing cold front pushed it northward and eventually absorbed the system.[2]
The storm produced rough surf and large waves along the coastline from Florida to North Carolina, causing beach erosion and some damage.[5] No deaths were directly attributable to Andrea, though six people died from the waves generated during its extratropical phase. The storm was also blamed for high winds that could have fueled severe wildfires in northern Florida and southern Georgia.[6] However, because Andrea never made landfall, most of the resulting damage was associated with large waves, higher than normal tides, associated coastal flooding, and beach erosion caused by the storm.[2]
| Tropical storm (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | June 1 – June 2 | ||
| Intensity | 60 mph (95 km/h) (1-min), 997 mbar (hPa) | ||
On May 30, a broad low pressure area formed in the Gulf of Honduras. Moving northward, the system slowly deepened as it moved through the northwest Caribbean Sea and into the southeast Gulf of Mexico. On June 1, the first day of the officially defined hurricane season, this cyclone organized into Tropical Storm Barry despite being located in an area of high shear, and warnings were immediately issued along the western Florida coastline. Barry provided much-needed precipitation to parts of Florida and Georgia, which were experiencing drought conditions.[7] Barry made landfall near Tampa Bay, Florida on June 2 as a minimal tropical storm. Soon thereafter Barry was downgraded to a tropical depression as it began its extratropical transition. Barry became an extratropical cyclone late in the afternoon of June 2. On June 3, the cyclone moved up the coast of the Carolinas bringing rains into the Mid-Atlantic states and New England. By June 5 its center had moved northward into Atlantic Canada.
| Tropical storm (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | July 30 – August 1 | ||
| Intensity | 50 mph (85 km/h) (1-min), 997 mbar (hPa) | ||
An area of low pressure developed near the Bahamas on July 28, and slowly organized while moving to the north-northeast. Late on July 30, it was upgraded to a tropical depression, the third of the season, after maintaining deep convection near the center for most of the day.
On July 31, the system strengthened into a tropical storm south of Nova Scotia, the first in nearly two months. However, Chantal became extratropical later that day as it tracked towards Newfoundland over the cooler waters of the north Atlantic.
On August 1, flooding was reported from Placentia to the capital city of St. John's, where about 4 inches (100 mm) of rain caused the postponement of the annual Royal St. John's Regatta. Up to 6 inches (150 mm) of rain fell in the Whitbourne area, according to Environment Canada.[8] The most serious flooding was across the southern Avalon Peninsula, where dozens of roads were washed out, houses were flooded above their basements and several communities were isolated.[9] Ferry service between Argentia and North Sydney, Nova Scotia, was suspended, and one ferry was diverted to Port aux Basques.[10]
States of emergency were declared in at least five communities in the areas surrounding Placentia Bay and Conception Bay, and the Newfoundland and Labrador Municipal Affairs Minister Jack Byrne requested a federal disaster area declaration. Damage is estimated to be well into the millions of dollars, with at least $4 million in damage in the town of Placentia alone.[10]
| Category 5 hurricane (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | August 13 – August 23 | ||
| Intensity | 175 mph (280 km/h) (1-min), 905 mbar (hPa) | ||
A vigorous tropical wave moved off the west coast of Africa in the second week of August. It quickly organized itself and formed into a low on August 12. Tropical Depression Four formed on August 13 in the eastern Atlantic from a tropical wave to the south of Cape Verde. The depression was already exhibiting persistent deep convection, albeit confined to the western portion of its circulation due to easterly wind shear.[11] The depression was expected to strengthen significantly over the following days[11] due to abating wind shear and warming sea surface temperatures, which created conditions favorable for tropical intensification.[12] The depression moved briskly westward, south of a deep layered ridge,[13] quickly escaping the easterly shear.[14]
Based on satellite images and microwave and QuikSCAT data, the depression was upgraded to Tropical Storm Dean on August 14.[15] The storm continued to strengthen overnight as it gained organization,[16] and on August 16 it was upgraded to the first hurricane of the 2007 season.[17]
On August 17 the eye of the hurricane passed into the Caribbean between the islands of Martinique and Saint Lucia as a Category 2 hurricane.[18] In the warm waters of the Caribbean, Dean rapidly strengthened into a Category 5 hurricane with 165 mph (266 km/h) sustained winds. An eyewall replacement cycle weakened Dean, which then passed just south of Jamaica as a Category 4 hurricane.[19] Dean regained Category 5 status late on August 20 and at that strength it made landfall on the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico near Costa Maya on August 21.[19] Dean weakened to a category one storm over land.
At least 42 people have been killed by Hurricane Dean (see Impact of Hurricane Dean). None of these deaths, however, have been attributed to its first landfall, as a Category 5 hurricane, likely because the landfall brought the heaviest storm surges onto sparsely-populated lands north of Chetumal Bay, including the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve.
| Tropical storm (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | August 14 – August 17 | ||
| Intensity | 40 mph (65 km/h) (1-min), 1003 mbar (hPa) | ||
On August 9, an area of convection developed just south of Jamaica in association with a trough of low pressure.[20] The system tracked west-northwestward, and by August 10 consisted of a broad surface trough with minimal shower activity.[21] Convection increased on August 11,[22] and by August 12 the interaction between a tropical wave and an upper-level low in the area resulted in a large area of disorganized thunderstorms extending from the western Caribbean Sea into the central Bahamas.[23] Upper-level winds gradually became more beneficial for development, and on August 13 a broad low pressure area formed about 90 miles (145 km) north-northeast of Cancún, Quintana Roo.[24] Late on August 14, a reconnaissance flight into the system reported a small circulation center, but at the time was not well-defined enough to result in the initiation of tropical cyclone advisories. However, deep convection was maintained near the increasingly organizing center, and at 0300 UTC on August 15 the National Hurricane Center classified it as Tropical Depression Five about 425 miles (685 km) southeast of Brownsville, Texas.[25]
Based on reconnaissance data received from an NOAA plane investigating the depression, it was upgraded to Tropical Storm Erin on August 15.[26] It weakened to a tropical depression as it made landfall near Lamar, Texas, on August 16,[27] and the NHC issued its last advisory on the system shortly thereafter as it moved inland, and the HPC dropped the system as a tropical depression when it lost its surface wind circulation on the afternoon of August 19.[28]
Two people were killed when a warehouse collapsed in Texas.[29] In total, 16 people died as a result of Erin. Damage was estimated at $25 million.
| Category 5 hurricane (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | August 31 – September 5 | ||
| Intensity | 175 mph (280 km/h) (1-min), 929 mbar (hPa) | ||
On August 31, a vigorous tropical wave east of the Windward Islands was numbered Tropical Depression Six after satellite imagery showed that a tropical low had formed.[30] Early on September 1, it was upgraded to a tropical storm and named Felix. Later that day, Felix was upgraded to a hurricane. On September 2, Felix was upgraded to a major hurricane. It rapidly intensified into a Category 5 storm by the end of the evening, and after briefly weakening to Category 4 status Felix again restrengthened and struck northeastern Nicaragua with winds of 160 mph (260 km/h) on September 4. (See Impact of Hurricane Felix). It rapidly weakened over land and the last advisory was issued on September 5. At least 133 people were killed by Hurricane Felix with another 70 missing.
| Tropical storm (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | September 8 – September 11 | ||
| Intensity | 60 mph (95 km/h) (1-min), 1004 mbar (hPa) | ||
A cold front that moved off the southeastern coast of the United States on September 1 developed a weak low over the waters near Georgia. The low drifted eastward and weakened over the next few days until it joined with convection from an upper-level trough that had been moving over the western Atlantic.[31] On September 8, the center of circulation became sufficiently organized to be declared Subtropical Storm Gabrielle, about 360 nautical miles (670 km) southeast of Cape Hatteras.[32] For the next twelve hours, the system's strongest winds and thunderstorms remained separated from the center. On September 8 new convection eventually united with the center, leading the transition of Gabrielle into a tropical storm. Gabrielle gradually strengthened as it traveled northwest towards North Carolina and Virginia. The storm reached its peak intensity of 60 mph (95 km/h) just before it arrived in Cape Lookout, though strong wind shear kept most of the convection and surface winds offshore.[31] Gabrielle weakened over land, and moved back into the Atlantic on September 10. The circulation deteriorated further, and the storm dissipated southwest of Nova Scotia the next day.[33]
In advance of the storm, tropical cyclone watches and warnings were issued for coastal areas,[31] while rescue teams and the U.S. Coast Guard were put on standby.[34] The storm dropped heavy rainfall near its immediate landfall location but little precipitation elsewhere. Along the coast, high waves, rip currents, and storm surge were reported. Slight localized flooding was reported. Gusty winds also occurred, though no wind damage was reported. Overall damage was minor, and there were no fatalities.[31]
| Tropical storm (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | September 12 – September 17 | ||
| Intensity | 45 mph (75 km/h) (1-min), 1002 mbar (hPa) | ||
A large tropical wave exited Africa on September 6 and initially failed to develop due to strong easterly shear. On September 9, a broad low pressure area developed about midway between Africa and the Lesser Antilles.[35] The wind shear slowly weakened, and early on September 12 Tropical Depression Eight developed about 1125 miles (1815 km) east of the Lesser Antilles. The system moved west-northwestward due to a ridge to its north, and with continued wind shear, it remained a tropical depression for 24 hours before convection increased further. Early on September 13 it intensified into Tropical Storm Ingrid, reaching peak winds of 45 mph (75 km/h).[35] Operationally, it was not upgraded to a tropical storm until that evening.[36]
Ingrid remained a tropical storm until September 15, when it weakened to a tropical depression due to high shear from a strong tropical upper tropospheric trough.[35] Gradual weakening continued as it passed northeast of the Leeward Islands.[37] Ingrid briefly reorganized on September 16,[37] before weakening further and degenerating into an open wave early on September 17.[38] The remnants turned northwestward within the low-level steering flow, and dissipated on September 18 without redevelopment. There were no reports of damage or casualties associated with Ingrid because the storm never threatened land.[35]
| Category 1 hurricane (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | September 12 – September 14 | ||
| Intensity | 90 mph (150 km/h) (1-min), 985 mbar (hPa) | ||
On September 8, a weak surface trough and an upper-level low produced disorganized showers and thunderstorms between western Cuba and the eastern Gulf of Mexico.[39] The area of thunderstorms continued to move west-northwestward across the Gulf of Mexico and on September 12, thunderstorms organized enough to be classified as Tropical Depression Nine about 60 miles (100 km) southeast of Matagorda, Texas.[40][41] The depression quickly intensified, and within three hours of forming, it became Tropical Storm Humberto.[42] Humberto turned to the north and eventually north-northeast and continued to rapidly intensify. In the early morning hours of September 13, a Hurricane Hunter aircraft found that Humberto had strengthened into a hurricane while located about 15 miles (20 km) off the coast of Texas.[43] Around 0700 UTC (3 a.m. CDT), Hurricane Humberto made landfall near High Island, Texas as a category 1 hurricane.[44] Humberto quickly weakened and entered Southwest Louisiana as a tropical storm during the afternoon of September 13.[45]
Hurricane Humberto caused some structural damage on High Island and widespread tree and power line damage in the Beaumont-Port Arthur area.[46] Power outages caused four oil refineries to halt production in Beaumont. One person was reported dead as a result of the storm, a Bridge City man killed when his carport crashed on him outside his house. Damage was estimated at $50 million.[46]
| Tropical depression (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | September 21 – September 22 | ||
| Intensity | 35 mph (55 km/h) (1-min), 1005 mbar (hPa) | ||
A subtropical depression formed on September 21 in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico from the interaction of a tropical wave, the tail end of a cold front, and an upper-level low. Initially containing a poorly-defined circulation and intermittent thunderstorm activity, the system transitioned into a tropical depression after convection increased over the center. Tracking northwestward, the depression moved ashore near Fort Walton Beach early on September 22, and shortly thereafter it dissipated over southeastern Alabama.[47]
It was the first tropical cyclone to threaten the New Orleans area after the destructive 2005 hurricane season and Hurricane Katrina.[48] Overall impact from the cyclone was minor and largely limited to light rainfall.[49] However, the precursor system spawned a damaging tornado in Eustis, Florida, where 20 houses were destroyed and 30 more were damaged.[50]
| Tropical storm (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | September 23 – September 24 | ||
| Intensity | 40 mph (65 km/h) (1-min), 1003 mbar (hPa) | ||
The origins of Jerry were from a non-tropical low pressure area over the central Atlantic on September 21. The system meandered for two days, gradually developing deeper convection and gaining organization. On September 23, the National Hurricane Center declared it a subtropical depression, as a warm core had developed but the system was still involved with an upper-level low, and its strongest winds were well removed from the center.[51] Early on September 23, both satellite estimates and QuikScat data determined that the depression had strengthened into Subtropical Storm Jerry, despite the lack of a well-defined inner core.[52]
The storm slowly acquired tropical characteristics including a better-defined warm core,[53] and Jerry became fully tropical that evening as a weak and sheared tropical storm with 40 mph (65 km/h) winds over a small radius.[51][54] It accelerated northeastward over cooler waters with sea surface temperatures below 75°F (24°C).[55] On September 24, it weakened to a tropical depression ahead of a powerful cold front with little deep convection remaining in the system.[56] That evening, a QuikScat pass determined that Jerry opened up into a trough, which was being absorbed into the larger frontal system.[57] It completely dissipated by early on September 25. Jerry never approached land during its lifespan, and no damage or casualties were reported.[51]
| Category 1 hurricane (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | September 25 – September 29 | ||
| Intensity | 75 mph (120 km/h) (1-min), 988 mbar (hPa) | ||
A very large tropical wave accompanied by a large envelope of low pressure emerged from the coast of Africa on September 21. As it moved westward, deep convection gradually increased over the disturbance as its broad low-level circulation became better-defined. By September 24, as the system traveled northwestward it organized enough to become a tropical depression.[58] Six hours later the depression was upgraded to Tropical Storm Karen.[59]
Karen's organization and intensity remained steady for the next day. Early on September 26, however, the storm strengthened significantly. In post-operational analysis the cyclone was determined to have reached hurricane-strength for about twelve hours.[58] The strengthening was short-lived because a sharp upper-level trough to the west of Karen increased the amount of vertical wind shear over the hurricane. By September 28 these unfavorable conditions had weakened Karen to a marginal tropical storm and left its low-level circulation exposed.[60] Meanwhile, the storm began heading northward and experiencing intermittent bursts of deep convection. However, the relentless wind shear exposed the system's circulation until it dissipated in the mid-Atlantic on September 29. Karen's remnants lingered near the Leeward Islands for the next few days, although the system never directly affected land. As a result, no reported damages or casualties were associated with Karen.[58]
| Category 1 hurricane (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | September 25 – September 28 | ||
| Intensity | 80 mph (130 km/h) (1-min), 990 mbar (hPa) | ||
A tropical wave moved off the western coast of Africa on September 11,[61] traversed the Caribbean and crossed the Yucatán on September 21. The disturbance developed a small surface low on September 24 while moving erratically over the southwestern Gulf of Mexico.[61] Strong upper-level winds initially prevented the system from developing convection; however, the shear relaxed on the following day and convection increased.[61][62] On the evening of September 25, a Hurricane Hunter aircraft found evidence that the low qualified as a tropical depression.[63] Under weak steering currents, the depression drifted south and southwest, executing a small cyclonic loop into the Bay of Campeche. Upper-level winds gave way to an anticyclone above the depression, and the system became Tropical Storm Lorenzo on September 27 about 130 nautical miles (240 km) east of Tuxpan.[61] Rapid intensification brought Lorenzo to hurricane status early that evening, less than twelve hours after becoming a tropical storm. Lorenzo reached its peak intensity on September 28, then weakened slightly before making landfall near Tecolutla, Mexico as a minimal hurricane. The small circulation weakened rapidly after landfall, and the system dissipated the next day.[61]
Six deaths in Mexico were attributed to Lorenzo, mostly due to flash floods and mudslides. The states of Puebla and Veracruz reported damage from rain and high winds. Two hundred people were forced to evacuate in Hidalgo when the San Lorenzo River overflowed its banks. Lorenzo made landfall in virtually the same location that Hurricane Dean had struck a month earlier.[61]
| Tropical storm (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | September 28 – September 30 | ||
| Intensity | 40 mph (65 km/h) (1-min), 1005 mbar (hPa) | ||
On September 26, a tropical wave exited Africa and quickly developed a low pressure area. Following a convective increase and better-defined outflow, it developed into Tropical Depression Fourteen about 115 miles (185 km) west-southwest of the southernmost Cape Verde Islands early on September 28.[64][65] Because the depression was isolated from the subtropical ridge, the depression drifted west-northwestward.[64] Westerly wind shear prevented significant development,[66] but following an increase in convection, the depression intensified into Tropical Storm Melissa early on September 29.[67] Similar to previous storms Ingrid and Karen, high wind shear in the deep tropics hindered Melissa's development,[68] and its peak winds were only 40 mph (65 km/h);[64] operationally, satellite imagery suggested the storm reached 45 mph (72 km/h).[69] By September 30, the shear and cooler waters weakened Melissa to a tropical depression with a poorly-defined surface center.[70] The system lost its deep convection and by that afternoon, Melissa degenerated into a remnant low.[71] It continued west-northwestward, producing intermittent convection, until being absorbed by a front northeast of the Lesser Antilles on October 5. There were no reports of damage or casualties.[64]
| Tropical depression (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | October 11 – October 12 | ||
| Intensity | 35 mph (55 km/h) (1-min), 1011 mbar (hPa) | ||
An area of disturbed weather extended from the northwestern Caribbean Sea to the western Atlantic Ocean on October 4,[72] possibly related to the remnants of Hurricane Karen.[73] The system slowly organized, developing a surface low pressure on October 8 to the northeast of the Turks and Caicos Islands. Convection associated with the storm steadily increased as the low moved towards the northeast.[72] By October 11, the low organized into Tropical Depression Fifteen about 740 mi (1,190 km) east-southeast of Bermuda,[74] after the convection had persisted for about 12 hours. An upper-level low to the west caused strong southwesterly wind shear, which inhibited development.[73]
On October 12, a building ridge caused the depression to slow at the same time as the convection began decreasing.[75] The storm's center became exposed as the deep convection became limited to a few small cells north of the center.[76] By that afternoon, the depression degenerated into a remnant low.[77] The remnant low persisted for the next several days while picking up speed and taking a gradual turn towards the northeast. The low transitioned into an extratropical cyclone on October 14 and intensified, moving through the Azores with gale force winds. It reached winds of 50 mph (85 km/h) before being absorbed by a larger extratropical storm on October 18.[72]
| Category 1 hurricane (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | October 28 – November 2 | ||
| Intensity | 80 mph (130 km/h) (1-min), 980 mbar (hPa) | ||
During the evening of October 27, a low pressure system that had been slowly developing over the eastern Caribbean gained enough organization to be declared Tropical Depression Sixteen. It steadily intensified and became a tropical storm on the afternoon of October 28. It made landfall in Haiti on October 29, and then meandered across the western Caribbean near Cuba for the next three days. Noel brought torrential rain to the region, killing at least 168 people. It then accelerated northeastward, passing through the Bahamas before strengthening to a hurricane on November 1. Noel began an extratropical transition on November 2. While sustained winds were still at Category 1 strength, the NHC issued its final advisory that afternoon. The Canadian Hurricane Centre issued ongoing advisories every three hours on Post-tropical Storm Noel as it approached Canada's eastern provinces until it completed its transition to being fully extratropical on November 4 while over Labrador, shortly before it crossed back into the Atlantic, heading towards western Greenland.
| Tropical storm (SSHS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Duration | December 11 – December 13 | ||
| Intensity | 60 mph (95 km/h) (1-min), 1003 mbar (hPa) | ||
In the second week of December, after the official end of the hurricane season, a low developed east of the northernmost Lesser Antilles. It slowly acquired tropical characteristics, and late on December 10, the National Hurricane Center declared it Subtropical Storm Olga while just north of Puerto Rico. It is the first post-season storm since Tropical Storm Zeta in the 2005 season. Olga was only one of a few out of season landfalls, and was the deadliest post-season storm in the Atlantic Basin, with 40 deaths. The storm made landfall on December 11 on the eastern tip of the Dominican Republic. Later that evening, Olga transitioned into a tropical storm just after making landfall. Olga tracked over Hispaniola and emerged in the Caribbean Sea. Strong wind shear and dry air caused Olga to weaken into a remnant low early on December 13.[78]
The storm impacted many areas affected by Tropical Storm Noel a month earlier. In Puerto Rico, moderate rainfall caused one death. According to the National Hurricane Center's Tropical Cyclone Report on Olga, at least 22 occurred due to the release of floodgates at a dam in Santiago Province. Two deaths were also reported in Haiti, and one fatality was confirmed in Puetro Rico. Almost 12,000 homes were damaged, of which 370 were completely destroyed.[78]
Hurricanes Dean, Felix, and Noel were retired by the World Meteorological Organization on May 13, 2008 at the 30th Session of the World Meteorological Organization's Regional Association IV Hurricane Committee during its annual meeting in Orlando, Florida. The names were replaced with Dorian, Fernand, and Nestor.[79]
|
Tropical cyclones of the 2007 Atlantic hurricane season |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Book · Category · Portal · WikiProject · Commons |
|
|
|||||