Hurricane Ophelia (2005)

Hurricane Ophelia

Category 1 hurricane (SSHWS/NWS)
Hurricane Ophelia on September 13, 2005
Formed	September 6, 2005
Dissipated	September 23, 2005
(Extratropical after September 17, 2005)
Highest winds	1-minute sustained: 85 mph (140 km/h)
Lowest pressure	976 mbar (hPa); 28.82 inHg
Fatalities	1 direct, 2 indirect
Damage	$70 million (2005 USD)
Areas affected	Bahamas, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, East Coast of the United States, Atlantic Canada, Europe
Part of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season

Hurricane Ophelia was the fifteenth named tropical cyclone and the eighth hurricane of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. It was a long-lived storm that was most remembered for its very erratic and extremely slow track off the East Coast of the United States, alternating several times between tropical storm and hurricane intensity.

Ophelia caused some damage and beach erosion along the United States coastline from Florida to North Carolina, with its closest approach occurring on September 14 and 15 with its western eyewall crossing land and the eye remaining just offshore. Minimal damage and erosion was also reported in Atlantic Canada when Ophelia hit as a tropical storm in extratropical transition on September 17 and 18.

On September 6 a non-tropical low over the northern Bahamas became more organized and formed into Tropical Depression Sixteen between Andros and Grand Bahama. Shortly after forming the depression moved over Grand Bahama and moved north parallel to the Florida coastline. The computer models initially predicted two distinct possibilities for the storm's future with some models indicating the storm would cross over Florida and enter the Gulf of Mexico while others indicated that it would stay offshore and move to the northeast. The official forecast from the National Hurricane Center followed the first set of guidance, though with low confidence. The storm strengthened to become Tropical Storm Ophelia early on September 7 and became a hurricane briefly the next day.

From September 9 to September 11, Ophelia fluctuated in strength, being downgraded to a tropical storm only to regain hurricane intensity three more times; during this time it moved very slowly and erratically in a northeasterly direction. The NHC continued to struggle to predict Ophelia, with the forecasts generally calling for a landfall on the east coast of the United States. The forecasters indicated there was a possibility that Ophelia could strengthen further to Category 3 strength, though they felt this was unlikely. On September 12 the storm completed a clockwise loop, then adopted a more north-westerly motion towards North Carolina, while still moving only slowly and fitfully. It dropped below hurricane strength again when the inner core of convection collapsed, possibly due to passing over cooler water that it upwelled earlier in its track. Ophelia then regained hurricane strength over the warm waters of the Gulf Stream. After the collapse of the inner core of convection, the hurricane acquired an unusually large eye over 115 miles (185 km) across and soon reached its peak strength with 85 mph (140 km/h) winds. The northern and western eyewall passed over the coastal areas of North Carolina throughout September 14–15, but the strongest winds remained offshore.