1931 Atlantic hurricane season

1931 Atlantic hurricane season
Season summary map
Seasonal boundaries
First system formedJune 25, 1931
Last system dissipatedNovember 25, 1931
Strongest storm
Name"British Honduras"
 • Maximum winds130 mph (215 km/h)
(1-minute sustained)
 • Lowest pressure952 mbar (hPa; 28.11 inHg)
Seasonal statistics
Total depressions13
Total storms13
Hurricanes3
Major hurricanes
(Cat. 3+)
1
Total fatalities2,533
Total damage~ $7.6 million (1931 USD)
Related articles
Atlantic hurricane seasons
1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933

The 1931 Atlantic hurricane season was an active hurricane season, with a total of 13 storms recorded, which was the most since 1916. However, only three of them intensified into hurricanes and just one reached major hurricane intensity, which is Category 3 or higher on the modern-day Saffir–Simpson scale. Nine of the tropical cyclones were identified in real-time,[1] while evidence of the existence of four other tropical cyclones was uncovered by the Atlantic hurricane reanalysis project in 2012 and added to the Atlantic hurricane database. Additionally, two of the tropical storms were upgraded to hurricane status as part of the reanalysis.[2]

Overall, the first four tropical cyclones left mostly minor impact on land. In early September, the fifth system caused severe flooding in Puerto Rico, leaving considerable damage to sugarcane crops and causing at least 30 deaths. Just days later, the British Honduras hurricane formed in the Caribbean Sea.[nb 1] The most intense tropical cyclone of the season, it peaked as a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph (215 km/h). Striking British Honduras, now Belize, at peak intensity, the hurricane caused about 2,500 deaths and about $7.5 million (1931 USD) in damage there.[nb 2] It remains the deadliest hurricane in the history of Belize. The next hurricane caused significant damage in Puerto Rico and resulted in at least two fatalities. The remaining six tropical cyclones left little to no impacts on land.

  1. ^ "Atlantic Basin Comparison of Original and Revised HURDAT". Hurricane Research Division. Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory. June 2019. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Meta was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Atlantic hurricane best track (HURDAT version 2)" (Database). United States National Hurricane Center. April 5, 2023. Retrieved November 24, 2024. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  4. ^ Continental United States Hurricane Impacts/Landfalls 1851-2019 (Report). Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory. June 2020. Retrieved March 10, 2021.


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