Hurricane Alice (December 1954) - Impact, Naming and Records

Impact, Naming and Records

Subsequent to the confirmation of the existence of Hurricane Alice, the U.S. Weather Bureau Office in San Juan, Puerto Rico warned the islands of the northern Lesser Antilles to prepare for strong winds and rough seas. Hurricane Alice produced moderate to strong winds across the islands, peaking at 81 mph (130 km/h) in Saint-Barthélemy and 75 mph (120 km/h) in Saba. The hurricane dropped moderate to heavy rainfall across several islands, including a peak of 11.27 inches (286 mm) in 48 hours recorded at Saba. Due to its small size, only a few islands received significant effects from the hurricane. Saint-Barthélemy, Saba, Anguilla, Sint Eustatius, and Saint Kitts reported damage from the hurricane, totaling $623,500 (1955 USD, $4.7 million 2006 USD). Damage was heaviest on Saba and Anguilla, occurring primarily to shipping facilities and crops. 626 houses were destroyed or severely damaged on Anguilla, as well. The damage was caused mostly by heavy rainfall and rough seas, not the direct action of the wind. The passage of Hurricane Alice greatly troubled the economies of the small affected islands. Additionally, the outer rainbands of the storm alleviated dry conditions on Puerto Rico which had persisted since the previous October. No deaths were reported.

This storm formed on December 30; however, in the days before satellites, meteorologists had to rely on reports from ships and islands in the Atlantic to locate and track storms. This information was often sketchy; two cyclones, including a Category 2 hurricane, operationally went undetected in 1954. It was officially recognized as a significant tropical cyclone on January 2, 1955. At the time, the National Weather Service used the same naming list each year, so the name given to this storm was "Alice" and it was designated as a part of the 1955 Atlantic hurricane season. However, it was found during post-storm analysis that the storm had actually formed on December 30, and was instead a part of the 1954 season. Therefore, the season had two storms named "Alice" — the first storm of the season, and the last. Had Alice been discovered before the end of the calendar year, it would have been named Irene, the next name on the 1954 list. Some reports named this storm Alice2 to avoid confusion with the earlier Alice from June 1954.

Alice formed later in the calendar year than any Atlantic tropical cyclone on record, forming six hours later in the season than Tropical Storm Zeta in 2005. No known tropical cyclones have formed during January, although an unnamed subtropical storm during the 1978 season formed on January 18. Alice was one of only eight Atlantic tropical cyclones to form in the month of December, and was one of only two tropical cyclones to exist in January, excluding the subtropical storm from 1978. Alice was the first of two Atlantic tropical cyclones to exist in two calendar years, the other being 2005's Tropical Storm Zeta. The hurricane was also the strongest tropical cyclone in the month of January.