Meteorological history | |
---|---|
Formed | August 30,2003 |
Dissipated | September 2,2003 |
Tropical storm | |
1-minute sustained (SSHWS/NWS) | |
Highest winds | 40 mph (65 km/h) |
Lowest pressure | 1007 mbar (hPa);29.74 inHg |
Overall effects | |
Fatalities | None reported |
Damage | $113,000 (2003 USD) |
Areas affected | Texas,Oklahoma,Ohio Valley,Mid-Atlantic States |
IBTrACS | |
Part of the 2003 Atlantic hurricane season |
Tropical Storm Grace was a weak tropical storm that struck Texas in the 2003 Atlantic hurricane season. The eleventh tropical depression and the seventh tropical storm of the season,Grace was also the weakest storm of the season. On August 30 the storm developed from a long-track tropical wave in the western Gulf of Mexico. Grace remained disorganized throughout its lifetime due to an upper-level low to its west. The weak storm moved northwestward and made landfall on southeastern Texas. Grace quickly weakened over land,and dissipated on September 2 as it merged into a cold front.
In Texas,the storm dropped heavy rainfall,causing minor flash flooding. The cold front,combined with the remnants of the storm,dropped moderate to heavy rainfall from Texas through the Mid-Atlantic. The worst of the flooding occurred in Indianapolis,where record rainfall affected over 700 homes. Despite the rainfall,damage was minimal along its path.
A strong tropical wave accompanied with a low pressure system moved off the coast of Africa on August 19. It moved quickly westward and organized, developing banding features and cirrus outflow near the blossoming convection. The wave nearly developed into a tropical cyclone on August 21, though its fast forward motion dislocated the low level circulation from the deep convection. The wave entered an area of dry air in the central Atlantic Ocean, and by late on August 22 most of the convection dissipated from the system. On August 24, convection increased as the wave passed through the Lesser Antilles, though strong southwesterly upper level wind shear prevented further development. The tropical wave moved through the Caribbean Sea, and developed deep convection due to more favorable conditions over the Gulf of Honduras on August 28. The wave crossed the Yucatán Peninsula, and developed a surface low pressure area on the 29th in the Gulf of Mexico. Convection continued to organize, and the tropical wave developed into Tropical Depression Eleven on August 30 while located 335 miles (539 km) east-southeast of Corpus Christi, Texas. [1]
The depression moved to the northwest, and intensified into Tropical Storm Grace six hours after forming. Despite the increase in winds the center of circulation remained very broad, with Reconnaissance Aircraft having difficulty pinpointing the center. In addition, an upper-level low located over Brownsville, Texas produced shear over the western portion of the system, which limited outflow to the east side. Forecasters predicted the upper-level low to weaken, allowing for the possibility of Grace to intensify to a 65 mph (105 km/h) tropical storm over warm waters. [2] However, the upper-level low remained in place and continued to produce shear across the system. A new center of circulation reformed 115 miles (185 km) north of the original center, and made landfall near San Luis Pass on the southwestern portion of Galveston Island on August 31 as a minimal tropical storm. Grace quickly weakened to a tropical depression over land, and after turning northeastward into Oklahoma the depression was absorbed by a cold front. [1]
Three hours after forming, officials issued Tropical Storm Warnings from High Island to Corpus Christi, Texas. [1] Local National Weather Service offices requested a voluntary evacuation for western Galveston Island including Jamaica Beach, the Bolivar Peninsula, and coastal areas of Brazoria and Matagorda counties, [3] though few residents heeded the warnings. Local emergency management officials predicted tides of up to 5 feet (1.5 m) above normal with coastal flooding. [4]
Grace produced moderate amounts of rainfall along its path, peaking in southern Texas. The storm later merged with a cold front, which later dropped heavy rainfall in the Mid-West United States. In addition to its impact on the United States, the outer rainbands of Grace caused light rainfall in Yucatán and northern Tamaulipas. [5]
Upon making landfall, Tropical Storm Grace produced a light storm surge of 3.5 feet (1.1 m) in Matagorda and North Jetty, Texas. Wind gusts peaked at 53 mph (85 km/h) with sustained winds of 40 mph (64 km/h) at Sea Rim State Park. Locations closer to where the storm made landfall reported below tropical storm force winds, with the exception of Galveston which recorded a 40 mph (64 km/h) wind gust. [1] Rainfall was moderate to heavy across eastern Texas, peaking at 10.36 inches (263 mm) in Spindletop Bayou. [6] The outer bands of Grace spawned a waterspout just south of the western tip of Galveston Island, prompting the issuance of a tornado warning. The waterspout dissipated before moving onshore. The storm also caused light beach erosion, though little occurred beyond the erosion caused by Hurricane Claudette one month prior. [3] Near the coast, high tides from the storm flooded piers, bulkheads, and low-lying areas. [4] Further inland, heavy rainfall lead to flash flooding, covering roads and entering a few houses. Overall, damage was minor, and totaled to $113,000 (2003 USD, $147,100 2016 USD). [7] [8]
In Oklahoma, moisture from the storm, combined with a slow-moving cold front, produced heavy rainfall across the state, peaking at 8.98 inches (228 mm) in Courtney. Due to below normal precipitation by as much as 5 to 10 inches (127 to 254 millimetres), flooding was localized and overall minimal. Near Medford, the rainfall led to 2 feet (0.61 m) deep flooding on U.S. Highway 81, forcing its closure. The rainfall was welcome in the state, and lessened the rainfall deficit. [9]
Tropical Storm Grace, combined with the slow-moving cold front, produced light to moderate rainfall totals across the southern United States, including isolated locations in Louisiana and Mississippi reporting over 3 inches (76 mm) and over 5 inches (130 mm) in northeastern Arkansas. [6]
In Missouri, the cold front combined with moisture from the remnants of Grace brought temporary relief to a severe drought [10] by producing light to moderate rainfall of up to 5 inches (130 mm) in the southeastern portion of the state. [6] In Poplar Bluff, the rainfall caused severe flooding, resulting in rescues for people in trapped vehicles. [11] The moisture produced over 5 inches (130 mm) in northern Kentucky, as well. [6]
Moisture from the remnants of Grace dropped heavy rainfall across central Indiana, including a record one-day total of 7 inches (180 mm) in Indianapolis, while other locations received over 9 inches (230 mm). Residents prepared sand bags to prevent overflowing rivers and creeks, though rising waters entered streets and over 700 homes. The rapid rainfall in Indianapolis backed up the sewage system, sending hundreds of millions of gallons of sewage into the streets. Following the deluge in the state, the governor declared a state of emergency for the state. Eight local American Red Cross chapters arrived to provide meals and aid to the affected people. [12]
The remnants of Grace dropped moderate to heavy rainfall eastward through the Mid-Atlantic States and New England. Locations in extreme western Maryland and southeastern Virginia received over 5 inches (130 mm) of rain. [6] In Maryland, Hagerstown recorded 3.94 inches (100 mm), resulting in flash flooding. In Washington County, the system produced 1.09 inches (28 mm) of rain, a new daily record. Damage in Maryland, if any, was unknown. [13]
Tropical Storm Allison was a tropical storm that devastated southeast Texas in June of the 2001 Atlantic hurricane season. An arguable example of the "brown ocean effect", Allison lasted unusually long for a June storm, remaining tropical or subtropical for 16 days, most of which was when the storm was over land dumping torrential rainfall. The storm developed from a tropical wave in the northern Gulf of Mexico on June 4, 2001, and struck the upper Texas coast shortly thereafter. It drifted northward through the state, turned back to the south, and re-entered the Gulf of Mexico. The storm continued to the east-northeast, made landfall on Louisiana, then moved across the southeast United States and Mid-Atlantic. Allison was the first storm since Tropical Storm Frances in 1998 to strike the northern Texas coastline.
The 2003 Atlantic hurricane season was a very active season with tropical cyclogenesis occurring before and after the official bounds of the season—the first such occurrence since the 1970 season. The season produced 21 tropical cyclones, of which 16 developed into named storms; seven of those attained hurricane status, of which three reached major hurricane status. The strongest hurricane of the season was Hurricane Isabel, which reached Category 5 status on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane scale northeast of the Lesser Antilles; Isabel later struck North Carolina as a Category 2 hurricane, causing $3.6 billion in damage and a total of 51 deaths across the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States.
The 2002 Atlantic hurricane season was a near-average Atlantic hurricane season. It officially started on June 1, 2002, and ended on November 30, dates which conventionally limit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones develop in the Atlantic Ocean. The season produced fourteen tropical cyclones, of which twelve developed into named storms; four became hurricanes, and two attained major hurricane status. While the season's first cyclone did not develop until July 14, activity quickly picked up: eight storms developed in the month of September. It ended early however, with no tropical storms forming after October 6—a rare occurrence caused partly by El Niño conditions. The most intense hurricane of the season was Hurricane Isidore with a minimum central pressure of 934 mbar, although Hurricane Lili attained higher winds and peaked at Category 4 whereas Isidore only reached Category 3. However, Lili had a minimum central pressure of 938 mbar.
Hurricane Anita was a powerful tropical cyclone during the otherwise quiet 1977 Atlantic hurricane season, and the latest first named storm on record since tropical cyclones were first named in 1950. The first tropical cyclone of the season, Anita developed from a tropical wave on August 29 in the north-central Gulf of Mexico. It tracked westward into an area with conditions favorable for further development, and quickly intensified into a hurricane by late on August 30. Initially, Anita was forecast to strike Texas, though a building ridge turned it to the west-southwest. The hurricane rapidly strengthened to attain peak winds of 175 mph (280 km/h), and on September 2 Anita made landfall in eastern Tamaulipas as a Category 5 hurricane. It quickly weakened as it crossed Mexico, and after briefly redeveloping into a tropical depression in the eastern Pacific Ocean, Anita dissipated on September 4 to the south of the Baja California Peninsula. Anita was the first major hurricane to form in The Gulf of Mexico since Hurricane Ethel of 1960.
Tropical Storm Odette was a rare off-season tropical cyclone that hit the island of Hispaniola in early December 2003. As the fifteenth named storm of the 2003 Atlantic hurricane season, Odette formed near the coast of Panama a few days after the official end of the Atlantic hurricane season ended on November 30, and ultimately made landfall on the Dominican Republic as a moderate tropical storm, before becoming extratropical on December 7, dissipating two days later.
Hurricane Claudette was a moderately strong tropical cyclone that struck South Texas in July 2003. A fairly long-lived July Atlantic hurricane, Claudette was the fourth depression, third tropical storm and first hurricane of the 2003 Atlantic hurricane season. Claudette began as a tropical wave in the eastern Caribbean. It moved quickly westward, brushing past the Yucatán Peninsula before moving northwestward through the Gulf of Mexico. Claudette remained a tropical storm until just before making landfall in Port O'Connor, Texas, when it quickly strengthened to a strong Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. Forecasting of its path and intensity was uncertain throughout its lifetime, resulting in widespread and often unnecessary preparations along its path.
Tropical Storm Matthew was a weak tropical storm in the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season that made landfall on Louisiana. It was the thirteenth tropical storm of the season and the ninth to affect the United States. It formed over the western Gulf of Mexico on October 8 and struck south-central Louisiana two days later. The combination of the storm and an upper cyclone over the southern Plains brought heavy rains to much of the Gulf Coast, with the highest amounts reported over 15 inches (380 mm) in northern Louisiana. Damage was minimal, totaling $305,000 (2004 USD), and no casualties were reported.
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Hurricane Erika was a weak hurricane that struck extreme northeastern Mexico near the Texas–Tamaulipas border in mid-August of the 2003 Atlantic hurricane season. Erika was the eighth tropical cyclone, fifth tropical storm, and third hurricane of the season. At first, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) operationally did not designate it as a hurricane because initial data suggested winds of 70 mph (110 km/h) at Erika's peak intensity. It was not until later data was analyzed that the NHC revised the storm to Category 1 intensity in the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. The storm developed from a non-tropical area of low pressure that was tracked for five days before developing in the eastern Gulf of Mexico on August 14. Under the influence of a high pressure system, Erika moved quickly westward and strengthened under favorable conditions. It made landfall as a hurricane on northeastern Mexico on August 16, and the storm's low-level circulation center dissipated by the next day. However, the storm's mid-level circulation persisted for another three days, emerging into the East Pacific and moving northwestward over Baja California, before dissipating on August 20.
Tropical Storm Danielle was a strong tropical storm that made landfall on Virginia in the 1992 Atlantic hurricane season. The fourth storm of the season, Danielle was one of two tropical cyclones in the year to make landfall in the United States, the other being Hurricane Andrew. It formed out of a stationary trough of low pressure on September 18 near the coast of North Carolina. The system quickly reached tropical storm status, and Danielle looped to the west due to a change in steering currents. Tropical Storm Danielle reached a peak of 65 mph (105 km/h) winds before weakening and hitting the Delmarva Peninsula. The storm quickly dissipated over land.
Hurricane John was a Category 4 hurricane that caused heavy flooding and extensive damage across most of the Pacific coast of Mexico in late August through early September 2006. John was the eleventh named storm, seventh hurricane, and fifth major hurricane of the 2006 Pacific hurricane season. Hurricane John developed on August 28 from a tropical wave to the south of Mexico. Favorable conditions allowed the storm to intensify quickly, and it attained peak winds of 130 mph (210 km/h) on August 30. Eyewall replacement cycles and land interaction with western Mexico weakened the hurricane, and John made landfall on southeastern Baja California Sur with winds of 110 mph (180 km/h) on September 1. It slowly weakened as it moved northwestward through the Baja California peninsula, and dissipated on September 4. Moisture from the remnants of the storm entered the southwest United States.
Hurricane Fern was the sixth named storm and fourth hurricane of the 1971 Atlantic hurricane season. It formed from a tropical wave which interacted with a large trough of low pressure to form Fern, as well as Hurricane Ginger, Tropical Storm Heidi, and a system later designated as Tropical Depression Sixteen, which moved into South Carolina. Fern crossed southeastern Louisiana as a tropical depression on September 4 before swinging back out over the Gulf of Mexico. Fern reached hurricane status on September 8, reaching a peak intensity of 90 mph (140 km/h) before making landfall near Freeport, Texas, two days later.
Tropical Storm Edouard was the first of eight named storms to form in September 2002, the most such storms in the North Atlantic for any month at the time. The fifth tropical storm of the 2002 Atlantic hurricane season, Edouard developed into a tropical cyclone on September 1 from an area of atmospheric convection associated with a cold front east of Florida. Under weak steering currents, Edouard drifted to the north and executed a clockwise loop to the west. Despite moderate to strong levels of wind shear, the storm reached a peak intensity of 65 mph (105 km/h) on September 3, but quickly weakened as it tracked westward. Edouard made landfall on northeastern Florida on September 5, and after crossing the state it dissipated on September 6 while becoming absorbed into the larger circulation of Tropical Storm Fay.
Hurricane Isis was the only hurricane to make landfall during the 1998 Pacific hurricane season. The ninth tropical storm and sixth hurricane of the season, Isis developed on September 1 from an interaction between a tropical wave and a large surface circulation to the southwest of Mexico. It moved northward, striking the extreme southeastern portion of the Baja California peninsula before attaining hurricane status in the Gulf of California. Isis made landfall at Topolobampo in the Mexican state of Sinaloa on September 3, and quickly lost its low-level circulation. The remnants persisted for several days before dissipating over the U.S. state of Idaho on September 8.
Hurricane Florence was the third of four named tropical cyclones to make landfall on the United States during the 1988 Atlantic hurricane season. The seventh tropical storm and second hurricane of the season, Florence developed on September 7 from an area of convection associated with a dissipating frontal trough in the southern Gulf of Mexico. After initially moving eastward, the storm turned northward and strengthened. Florence reached hurricane status and later peak winds of 80 mph (130 km/h) on September 9 shortly before striking southeastern Louisiana. The storm rapidly weakened over land and dissipated on September 11 over northeastern Texas.
The meteorological history of Hurricane Jeanne lasted for about two weeks in September 2004. Hurricane Jeanne was the eleventh tropical cyclone, tenth named storm, seventh hurricane, and sixth major hurricane of the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season. It formed from a tropical wave on September 13 near the Lesser Antilles, and encountered favorable enough conditions to reach tropical storm status. Jeanne strengthened further in the eastern Caribbean, becoming a strong tropical storm and developing an eye before striking Puerto Rico on September 15. Remaining well-organized, it attained hurricane status before hitting the eastern tip of the Dominican Republic on September 16.
Hurricane Paine was the sixteenth tropical storm and eighth hurricane of the fairly active 1986 Pacific hurricane season; moisture from the system contributed to one of the most significant flooding events in Oklahoma history. Paine formed on September 28 off the southeast coast of Mexico. It moved around a ridge, later turning to the north and brushing the Baja California Peninsula. By that time, Paine had attained peak winds of 100 mph (160 km/h), but it weakened slightly before hitting the Mexican state of Sonora. The remnant moisture combined with a cold front to produce heavy rainfall in the South Central United States.