| 1898 Atlantic hurricane season | |
|---|---|
 Season summary map | |
| Seasonal boundaries | |
| First system formed | August 2, 1898 |
| Last system dissipated | November 4, 1898 |
| Strongest storm | |
| Name | "Georgia" |
| • Maximum winds | 130 mph (215 km/h) (1-minute sustained) |
| • Lowest pressure | 938 mbar (hPa; 27.7 inHg) |
| Seasonal statistics | |
| Total storms | 11 |
| Hurricanes | 5 |
| Major hurricanes (Cat. 3+) | 1 |
| Total fatalities | ≥486 total |
| Total damage | > $4.4 million (1898 USD) |
| Related article | |
The 1898 Atlantic hurricane season marked the beginning of the Weather Bureau operating a network of observation posts across the Caribbean Sea to track tropical cyclones, established primarily due to the onset of the Spanish–American War. A total of eleven tropical storms formed, five of which intensified into a hurricane, according to HURDAT, the National Hurricane Center's official database. Further, one cyclone strengthened into a major hurricane.[nb 1] However, in the absence of modern satellite and other remote-sensing technologies, only storms that affected populated land areas or encountered ships at sea were recorded, so the actual total could be higher. An undercount bias of zero to six tropical cyclones per year between 1851 and 1885 and zero to four per year between 1886 and 1910 has been estimated.[2] The first system was initially observed on August 2 near West End in the Bahamas, while the eleventh and final storm dissipated on November 4 over the Mexican state of Veracruz.
Originally, only nine storms were recognized during the 1898 season, until reanalysis by meteorologists José Fernández-Partagás and Henry F. Diaz in 1996 led to the inclusion of the third and tenth systems. The Atlantic hurricane reanalysis project implemented few significant changes while reviewing the season in 2011, declining to add or remove storms from HURDAT. However, a study by climate researcher Michael Chenoweth, published in 2014, lists twelve tropical cyclones, proposing the removal of both systems first documented by Fernández-Partagás and Diaz and the eighth storm, as well as the addition of four new storms. However, Chenoweth's reanalysis has yet to be added to HURDAT.
The most intense tropical cyclone of the season, the seventh system, peaked as a Category 4 hurricane on the present-day Saffir–Simpson scale with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph (215 km/h). On October 2, the hurricane struck Georgia, causing 179 fatalities in the state and about $1.5 million (1898 USD) in damage there and in Florida combined.[nb 2] Another devastating storm was the fourth cyclone, which left at least 283 deaths, including 200 or more on Saint Vincent, and approximately $2.5 million in property damage alone on Barbados. In August, the first system caused some damage in the Tampa area and the Florida Panhandle, while 16 people were killed after vessels capsized in the Gulf of Mexico. Additionally, flooding in Cuba's defunct Santa Clara Province as a result of the ninth storm left eight people dead due to drowning. Several other systems impacted land, but generally to a minor extent. Overall, the tropical cyclones of the 1898 Atlantic hurricane season caused at least 486 deaths and more than $4.4 million in damage.
- ^ North Atlantic Hurricane Basin (1851-2022) Comparison of Original and Revised HURDAT. Hurricane Research Division; Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (Report). Miami, Florida: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. April 2023. Retrieved March 17, 2024.
- ^ Landsea, Christopher W. (2004). "The Atlantic hurricane database re-analysis project: Documentation for the 1851–1910 alterations and additions to the HURDAT database". In Murname, Richard J.; Liu, Kam-biu (eds.). Hurricanes and Typhoons: Past, Present and Future. New York City, New York: Columbia University Press. p. 195. ISBN 0-231-12388-4. Retrieved March 16, 2024.
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