Season Summary
The 1948 Atlantic hurricane season was slightly below average, and it featured a total of nine storms, which fell below the climatological seasonal average of ten. All of the hurricanes formed during the latter half of the season, and the number of intense hurricanes surpassed the average of two. The season featured one tropical storm in May, and it was among eighteen tropical systems which formed during that month in the Atlantic basin. Of the ten tropical disturbances detected operationally, five struck the United States with winds of 39 miles per hour (63 km/h) or greater, while the other tropical systems affected islands, remained over the open ocean, or affected the country with winds below tropical storm intensity. Three hurricanes made landfall in the United States, while the three other storms with winds of at least 74 mph (120 km/h) largely remained at sea.
The strongest storms of the season attained Category 4 intensity; two of the major hurricanes formed in the western Caribbean Sea and affected the United States in late September and October. A minimal hurricane struck southern Louisiana, causing tides of five feet and winds of 78 miles per hour (126 km/h) in New Orleans. A minimal tropical storm made landfall near Destin in July. An intense hurricane attained Category 4 strength and produced extensive damage and 100 miles per hour (160 km/h) wind gusts on Bermuda in mid-September. A Category 3 hurricane struck the southern portion of Florida, resulting in $12 million of damages in the state. After the passage of one week, another hurricane affected the region as a Category 3 storm, after crossing Cuba with winds of 135 miles per hour (217 km/h). Only three direct fatalities occurred in the United States, largely because of improved evacuations and adherence to warnings and advisories.
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