1979 Pacific hurricane season
| 1979 Pacific hurricane season | |
|---|---|
Season summary map
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| Seasonal boundaries | |
| First system formed | May 29, 1979 |
| Last system dissipated | November 18, 1979 |
| Strongest storm | |
| Name | Ignacio |
| • Maximum winds | 145 mph (230 km/h) (1-minute sustained) |
| • Lowest pressure | 938 mbar (hPa; 27.7 inHg) |
| Seasonal statistics | |
| Total depressions | 13 |
| Total storms | 10 |
| Hurricanes | 6 |
| Major hurricanes (Cat. 3+) |
4 |
| Total fatalities | Unknown |
| Total damage | Unknown |
| Related articles | |
| Tropical depression (SSHWS) | |
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| Duration | May 29 – May 31 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 35 mph (55 km/h) (1-min) |
| Category 2 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
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| Duration | May 31 – June 4 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 100 mph (155 km/h) (1-min) ≤ 992 mbar (hPa) |
| Tropical storm (SSHWS) | |
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| Duration | June 21 – June 25 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 50 mph (85 km/h) (1-min) |
| Tropical storm (SSHWS) | |
  |
|
| Duration | July 14 – July 16 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 50 mph (85 km/h) (1-min) |
| Tropical depression (SSHWS) | |
 |
|
| Duration | July 16 – July 16 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 35 mph (55 km/h) (1-min) |
| Category 3 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
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|
| Duration | July 17 – July 23 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 120 mph (195 km/h) (1-min) |
| Category 4 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
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| Duration | August 17 – August 24 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 145 mph (230 km/h) (1-min) |
| Category 3 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
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| Duration | August 21 – August 25 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 115 mph (185 km/h) (1-min) |
| Tropical depression (SSHWS) | |
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| Duration | September 4 – September 4 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 35 mph (55 km/h) (1-min) |
The 1979 Pacific hurricane season was an inactive Pacific hurricane season. It officially started on May 15, 1979, in the eastern Pacific, and June 1, 1979, in the central Pacific, and lasted until November 30, 1979. These dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones form in the northeast Pacific Ocean.
With ten storms, less than two-thirds of the average of seventeen, this season was very inactive. There were six hurricanes, also below average. Of those hurricanes, four were major by reaching Category 3 or higher on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. As of the 2015 Pacific hurricane season, 1979 remains the most recent year without any tropical cyclones active in the Central Pacific.
A tropical disturbance formed on May 29 south of Manzanillo, Mexico and moved slowly southwestward. On May 31, the storm was upgraded to tropical depression status based on satellite data. Shortly after becoming a depression, the storm turned northward over cooler waters where it rapidly weakened and dissipated 370 mi (600 km) southwest of Manzanillo. The only effects from the tropical depression was from a ship which reported heavy rainfall.
A depression formed on May 31, In early June, it became a hurricane, subsequently named Andres, and approached the Mexican coast as a large hurricane. The hurricane disintegrated rapidly as it approached the coast, and eventually made landfall as a weak depression on June 4. Initial reports indicated that the storm made landfall with winds of 60 mph (95 km/h); however, according to the Eastern Pacific Hurricane Database, the storm crossed the shore with winds of 75 mph (120 km/h).
Around Acapulco, airlines canceled flights in and out of the region on June 3 and resumed the following day after the passage of Andres. Torrential rainfall triggered widespread flooding which inundated homes and floated cars left on streets. High winds also downed power lines, leaving many residents without electricity. Offshore, two fishermen were killed by the storm after their boat capsized amidst rough seas.
A westward moving tropical disturbance from the Atlantic crossed into the Pacific Ocean over Costa Rica and Panama on June 17. Continuing westward, the disturbance developed into the third tropical depression of the season on June 21. It further intensified and became Tropical Storm Blanca, eventually peaking as a relatively weak 50 mph (85 km/h) tropical storm. As Blanca was heading west-northwestward, it began to slowly weaken after peak intensity, and later dissipated on June 25. Blanca remained out at sea for the entire duration, and no fatalities or damage was reported as a result.
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Wikipedia