1891 Martinique hurricane
| Category 3 major hurricane (SSHWS/NWS) | |
| Formed | August 18, 1891 |
|---|---|
| Dissipated | August 25, 1891 |
| Highest winds |
1-minute sustained: 125 mph (205 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 961 mbar (hPa); 28.38 inHg |
| Fatalities | >700 |
| Damage | $10 million (1891 USD) |
| Areas affected | Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico, The Bahamas |
| Part of the 1891 Atlantic hurricane season | |
The 1891 Martinique hurricane, also known as Hurricane San Magín, was an intense major hurricane that struck the island of Martinique and caused massive damage. It was the third hurricane of the 1891 Atlantic hurricane season and the only major hurricane of the season. It was first sighted east of the Lesser Antilles on August 18 as a Category 2 hurricane. The storm made landfall on the island of Martinique, where it caused severe damage, over 700 deaths and at least 1,000 injuries. It crossed eastern Dominican Republic while tracking on a northwestward direction on August 19–20, passed the Mona Passage on August 20 and the Bahamas on August 22–23. It crossed the U.S. State of Florida and dissipated in the Gulf of Mexico after August 25. Total damage is estimated at $10 million (1891 USD). The storm is considered to be the worst on Martinique since 1817.
The equivalence of a Category 2 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale with winds of 105 mph (169 km/h) was first observed at 1200 UTC on August 18, 1891, about 100 mi (160 km) east of Barbados. Tracking northwestward at 20 mph (32 km/h), at 1800 UTC the storm attained winds that correspond to Category 3 status, what is now considered major hurricane. That night, the hurricane passed over Martinique, lashing the island for four continuous hours. It is reported that numerous people suffered deafness on the island during the passage of the storm, believed to be a result of drastic decreases in barometric pressure. After reaching a peak intensity with winds of 125 miles per hour (201 km/h) and a minimum central pressure of 961 mb, the storm began to weaken, and was downgraded to the equivalence of Category 2 status early on August 20. At 1800 UTC, it tracked just to the south of Puerto Rico and, as it began to turn northward, it made landfall on the extreme eastern edge of the Dominican Republic with winds of 100 mph (160 km/h). Around midnight on August 21, the cyclone passed north of Grand Turk of the Turks and Caicos Islands. During the late afternoon and into the evening hours there, frequent rain squalls occurred, and at 10:15 pm a strong gust of wind was reported. After that gust, the winds decreased in intensity, until around 12:00 am when winds picked up from the west. By 8:00 am the next morning, the wind had become south, and rain was steadily falling on the island.
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