Hurricane Cindy (1963)

Hurricane Cindy

Category 1 hurricane (SSHWS/NWS)
Weather map of Cindy on 17 September 1963
Formed	16 September 1963
Dissipated	20 September 1963
Highest winds	1-minute sustained: 80 mph (130 km/h)
Lowest pressure	996 mbar (hPa); 29.41 inHg
Fatalities	3 direct
Damage	$12.5 million (1963 USD)
Areas affected	Texas, Western Louisiana
Part of the 1963 Atlantic hurricane season

Hurricane Cindy was the first hurricane to form in the Gulf of Mexico since 1960. The third named storm of the 1963 Atlantic hurricane season, Cindy developed within a trough as a tropical storm in the Gulf of Mexico on 16 September. The disturbance swiftly intensified to hurricane strength, with a distinct eye becoming visible on satellite imagery as it drifted north-northwestwards toward the Texas coastline. Despite favorable conditions, with high sea surface temperatures, the storm only intensified into a Category 1 hurricane. After peaking with 1-minute maximum sustained winds of 80 mph (130 km/h), it made landfall at High Island on the morning of 17 September as a slightly weaker system with an atmospheric pressure of 996 mbar (hPa; 29.41 inHg). Cindy remained nearly stationary for almost a day, dropping copious rainfall over the Texas coastal plain, before finally turning west-southwestward and dissipating west of Corpus Christi on 20 September.

Hurricane watches and warnings were issued prior to Cindy's landfall, hastening evacuations in coastal areas of Louisiana and Texas, with many refugees seeking safety in local shelters. Although tide and wind damage was minimal, extreme rainfall totaling upwards of 23.50 in (597 mm) resulted in severe flooding in many areas of the Texas coastal plain; 4,000 homes were inundated in Jefferson, Orange, and Newton counties, many of them after a levee ruptured in Port Acres. Dozens of residents were forced to flee in rising flood waters, and many streets and roadways became impassable as a result of Cindy's flooding. Strong winds shattered glass windows, and schools throughout southeastern Texas were closed due to the hurricane. Widespread crop damage was observed, with rice, cotton, and pecan harvests suffering the worst. Overall, damage amounted to $12.5 million (1963 USD), and three deaths were recorded.