1886 Atlantic Hurricane Season - Season Summary

Season Summary

The Atlantic hurricane database (HURDAT) recognizes twelve tropical cyclones for 1886 in the Atlantic basin; two were tropical storms and ten were hurricanes. The most notable hurricane of the 1886 Atlantic season was Hurricane Five or the 1886 Indianola Hurricane which led to the abandonment of that town. The 1886 Atlantic hurricane season began with three U.S. landfalling hurricanes in June. Of the four years that have had three June tropical storms (1968, 1936, 1909 and this), 1886 was the only season to have three June hurricanes. The first of these was Hurricane One that formed in the Gulf of Mexico on June 13 and made landfall in Louisiana the next day. It brought a storm surge and flooding to parts of both the Texas and Louisiana coast. A week later, Hurricane Two also made a landfall along the US Gulf Coast, at St Marks Florida. At the end of June, a second Category 1 hurricane hit the Florida coast. Before its Florida landfall, at Apalachicola, Hurricane Three had caused fatalities in Jamaica and some damage in Cuba. Moving north from Florida it brought flooding to Virginia. In mid-July Hurricane Four brought heavy rain to both Cuba and Florida before moving into the Atlantic. Hurricane Five struck Hispaniola as a Category 1 hurricane on August 15, then Cuba as a Category 2 storm on August 16 after which it strengthened still further to Category 4 intensity while crossing the Gulf of Mexico. It impacted the Texas coast at that strength on August 20 with fatal results for the town of Indianola and other settlements. Five days after Hurricane Five hit Cuba, Hurricane Six struck the centre of the island. The hurricane originated east of Barbados on August 15 and had already caused some damage at Curacao and, possibly some fatalities at Saint Vincent and on Jamaica. The hurricane also struck the Bahamas before dissipating off Newfoundland. Hurricane Seven was a strong Category 3 hurricane that was active in the Western Atlantic between August 20 and 25th, and which struck several vessels in the Georges Bank and Grand Banks areas. Five weeks after been struck by Hurricane Five the Texas town of Indianola was again flooded when Hurricane Eight hit the Texas coast between Brownsville and Corpus Christi on September 23. The town was abandoned shortly afterwards. Hurricane Nine was a Category 2 hurricane active in the Western Atlantic between September 22 and 30th, that never made a landfall. Hurricane Ten did make a landfall on the Gulf Coast at the border of Texas and Louisiana. It wrecked the town of Sabine Pass, Texas, flooded parts of both New Orleans and Port Eads and destroyed the settlement at Johnson Bayou. After ten hurricanes, the 1886 season ended with two tropical storms. Tropical Storm Eleven was active in the Atlantic between October 10 and 15th. Tropical Storm Twelve formed in the Caribbean Sea, south of Haiti on October 22. It crossed Haiti the same day and dissipated in the Atlantic on October 26.