List of Bermuda hurricanes

The British Overseas Territory of Bermuda has a long history of encounters with Atlantic tropical cyclones, many of which inflicted significant damage and influenced the territory's development. A small archipelago comprising about 138 islands and islets, Bermuda occupies 21 square miles (54 km²) in the North Atlantic Ocean, roughly 650 miles (1,050 km) east of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.^[1] The islands are situated far outside the Main Development Region for Atlantic hurricanes,^[2] but within the typical belt of recurving tropical cyclones.^[3] Most storms form in the central Atlantic or western Caribbean Sea before approaching Bermuda from the southwest; storms forming north of 28°N are unlikely to impact the territory.^[4]

According to the Bermuda Weather Service, Bermuda experiences a damaging tropical cyclone once every six to seven years, on average.^[3] Due to the small area of the island chain, landfalls and direct hits are rare.^[3] Strictly speaking, only 11 landfalls have occurred during years included in the official Atlantic hurricane database, starting in 1851.^[5] When hurricanes Fay and Gonzalo struck Bermuda just days apart in October 2014, that season became the first to produce two landfalls. Two damaging storms impacted Bermuda in September 1899, but the center of the first narrowly missed the islands.^[6] Tropical cyclones, and their antecedent or remnant weather systems, have affected the territory in all seasons, most frequently in the late summer months.^[3] A study of recorded storms from 1609 to 1996 found that direct hits from hurricanes were most common in early September and late October, with an intervening relative lull creating two distinct 'seasons'.^[7]

Hurricanes late in the year often receive baroclinic enhancement while undergoing extratropical transition.^[7] Bermuda is less likely to be impacted during years when the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and southeastern United States are favored targets.^[3] Even in intense hurricanes, the islands tend to fare relatively well; ever since a cyclone in 1712 destroyed many wooden buildings, most structures have been built with stone walls and roofs, and are able to withstand severe winds. As a result, hurricane-related deaths have been uncommon since the early 18th century.^[3] Ten storms have collectively caused 129 fatalities; 110 of them, or 85%, were the result of shipwrecks along the shore in Hurricane "Ten" of 1926. Hurricane Fabian in 2003 was the only system in the weather satellite era to cause storm-related deaths.

In total, 200 storm events are listed, with widely varying degrees of damage. A hurricane in 1609 was responsible for the first permanent settlement in Bermuda: in late July, the Jamestown-bound, British ship Sea Venture nearly foundered in the storm and sought refuge on the islands, which the passengers found surprisingly hospitable. Hurricane Fabian was the most intense system to impact the territory in modern times, though officially it did not make landfall, and it was the only storm to have its name retired for effects in Bermuda. The costliest storms were Fabian and Gonzalo, which caused about $300 million and $200–400 million in damage respectively (2003 and 2014 USD). Accounting for inflation and continued development, Fabian would have likely wrought around $650 million in damage had it struck in 2014.^[8] The most recent tropical cyclone to affect the islands was Hurricane Ernesto in August 2024.