History of name Claudette

[Andrew92]

1979: A tropical wave became a tropical depression on July 15 and Tropical Storm Claudette on the 17th as it approached the Leeward Islands. It only intensified to 45-mph winds before hitting some of the larger islands, such as Puerto Rico, and then 12 hours later on the 18th weakened to a tropical depression. From there, it traversed Hispaniola and Cuba before entering the Gulf of Mexico, while moving at speeds of over 15 mph. It slowed significantly when it reached the Gulf of Mexico and turned northwestward, heading towards Texas. It was re-upgraded to a tropical storm while located in the central part of the gulf on the 23rd. It gathered 50-mph winds before making landfall the next day east of Galveston, Texas. Two days later, it stalled and dumped massive amounts of rainfall in the state before the remnants were finally picked up three days later and sent to the northeast. Claudette in 1979 was responsible for $400 million and 2 fatalities, one in Puerto Rico, and one in Texas. The costliest tropical storm to never become a hurricane until Alberto in 1994.

1985: This system developed from a subtropical storm off of the southeastern states and generally moved eastward its whole path. It became a tropical storm by August 11 and briefly the next day threatened Bermuda. After passing Bermuda with winds at about 50 mph on the 12th, it became better organized and became a hurricane on the 14th. It sped up and headed towards the Azores with winds at 85 mph, but by the time it got closer to the islands by the 16th, it was downgraded to a tropical storm. It passed the Azores that day and the next morning was declared extratropical. No major damage was result from Claudette in 1985.

1991: Developed from a frontal low southeast of Bermuda on September 5. It initially moved very slowly westward, becoming a hurricane on the 6th before moving northwestward. By the 7th, it was moving northward and then northeastward, becoming a very intense category 4 hurricane with winds at 135 mph. That was short-lived though, and shearing took its toll on Claudette as it turned eastward and sped up by the 8th. It was downgraded to a tropical storm on the 10th and a depression the next day. It approached the Azores with winds estimated at 35 mph, as it became extratropical late on the 12th. No major damage was result from Claudette in 1991.

1997: Developed from a frontal low off of the Carolina states into a tropical storm on July 13 and drifted northward, gathering winds at 50 mph over the next two days. By the 15th, shearing was taking its toll on the system as it turned eastward. By the 16th, it was barely a tropical storm racing eastward and it dissipated the next day as it passed Bermuda. No major effects from Claudette in 1997.

2003: Developed on July 8 into a tropical storm from a fast-moving tropical wave south of Hispaniola. It sped south of Jamaica with winds at 70 mph and appeared to be heading towards the Yucatan Peninsula as a hurricane. But on the 10th, it turned northwestward and briefly weakened due to shearing. The shearing relaxed and by evening it had winds at 70 mph again, heading towards Cancun and Cozumel. It weakened again, however, and made landfall near Cancun with winds at about 60 mph the next day. It then entered the Gulf of Mexico and slowed down significantly, while the center became exposed. By night, winds dropped to 50 mph, and held there through the 13th, as it stalled about 300 miles east of Brownsville, Texas. From there, it jogged northward and began to re-intensify as shearing slowly relaxed. By the end of the 14th, Claudette had winds at 70 mph and was turning northwestward towards Corpus Christi, Texas. Early the next morning, moving westward, Claudette became the first hurricane of the year and around midday, made landfall near Port O'Connor, Texas, with winds originally estimated at about 85 mph, but may have been upwards to 100 mph, a borderline category 1/category 2 hurricane. That night, as it sped up inland, it weakened to a tropical storm and began dumping heavy rains in Texas. By morning of the 16th, Claudette was downgraded to a tropical depression and rains spread into western Texas before dissipating. Damage is believed to be close to $100 million and at least 2 people were killed.

-Andrew92