1946 Florida hurricane
| Category 2 hurricane (SSHWS/NWS) | |
Map of the storm on October 8
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| Formed | October 5, 1946 |
|---|---|
| Dissipated |
October 14, 1946 (extratropical after October 8) |
| Highest winds |
1-minute sustained: 100 mph (155 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 977 mbar (hPa); 28.85 inHg |
| Fatalities | 5 total |
| Damage | $5.2 million (1946 USD) |
| Areas affected | Cuba, Florida, Southeastern United States |
| Part of the 1946 Atlantic hurricane season | |
The 1946 Florida hurricane also known as the 1946 Tampa Bay hurricane was the last hurricane to make direct landfall in the Tampa Bay Area of the U.S. state of Florida to date. Forming on October 5 from the complex interactions of several weather systems over the southern Caribbean Sea, the storm rapidly strengthened before striking western Cuba. After entering the Gulf of Mexico, it peaked with winds corresponding to Category 2 status on the modern-day Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale; however, it quickly weakened before approaching Florida. It made landfall south of St. Petersburg and continued to weaken as it proceeded inland. Its remnants persisted for several days longer.
In advance of the storm, preparations were taken along threatened areas of coastal Florida (mainly the Tampa Bay Area), including the evacuation of thousands of residents. Damage was extensive in Cuba, and five people were killed there. The cyclone's effects in the United States were minor to moderate, and the most significant impact was to citrus crops. No deaths occurred in the country, although high tides caused some flooding of low-lying terrain. The cyclone's structure was extensively observed and investigated.
At the end of September 1946, the Intertropical Convergence Zone in the Eastern Pacific moved north of its typical position. An associated weather disturbance moved over Central America and interacted with a surface low-pressure area over Guatemala. Meanwhile, a broad high-pressure area moved over the United States behind an intense storm that moved eastward into the Atlantic Ocean. Connected to the cyclone was a shear line stretching from Bermuda to the Caribbean Sea, which spawned an upper-level low over open waters. It moved westward on October 4, and by the next day it was located over the Southeastern United States. The feature over Guatemala began moving toward the northeast as the upper-level low approached and began deepening. Modern-day analysis estimates that the system became a tropical storm early on October 5, shortly after emerging into the Caribbean.
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