Tropical Storm Laura (1971)
| Tropical Storm (SSHWS/NWS) | |
Tropical Storm Laura approaching Central America
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| Formed | November 12, 1971 |
|---|---|
| Dissipated | November 22, 1971 |
| Highest winds |
1-minute sustained: 70 mph (110 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 994 mbar (hPa); 29.35 inHg |
| Fatalities | 1 reported |
| Damage | Minimal |
| Areas affected | Cayman Islands, Cuba, Central America |
| Part of the 1971 Atlantic hurricane season | |
Tropical Storm Laura was the final storm in the active 1971 Atlantic hurricane season. It formed on November 12 in the western Caribbean Sea, and reached winds of 70 mph (120 km/h) as it approached western Cuba. Across the island, Laura produced heavy rainfall, peaking at 32.5 inches (83 cm). The resulting flooding killed one person and caused crop damage. 26,000 people were forced to evacuate their homes. Initially, Laura was forecast to move across the island and impact the southern United States, but it executed a small loop and turned to the southwest. The storm moved ashore on Belize, one of only four November storms to affect the country. Little impact occurred during Laura's final landfall, and it dissipated on November 22 over central Guatemala.
Tropical Storm Laura began in a large area of convection across the southwest Caribbean Sea in mid-November. On November 12, a tropical depression formed about 175 miles (280 km) north of Panama. It moved northwestward, slowly organizing and becoming a tropical storm on November 14. Receiving the name Laura, the storm continued to intensify as it turned northward toward western Cuba; late on November 15, it attained peak winds of 70 mph (110 km/h). Originally, the National Hurricane Center anticipated Laura would attain hurricane status, as well as for it to continue northward into the Gulf of Mexico. Although a cold front was expected to bring the storm to the north, a ridge instead increased over the southeastern United States, which prevented Laura from moving ashore.
Tropical Storm Laura maintained peak winds for about 48 hours, during which a minimum pressure of 994 hectopascals (29.4 inHg) was recorded. Steering currents were initially weak, which caused the storm to drift toward the northeast, before the ridge to its north forced the storm to the southwest; by late on November 17, Laura finished executing a clockwise loop. Its path to the southwest away from Cuba was unusual; only two other storms on record – a hurricane in 1888 and Hurricane Ike in 2008 – had a southward element in their path when they affected Cuba, and each struck the northern coast of the country. Laura weakened as it turned westward and later to the south and southwest. After the winds decreased to 50 mph (85 km/h), however, the storm began re-intensifying as it approached Central America. Late on November 20, Laura again reached peak winds of 70 mph (120 km/h), which was maintained for 30 hours until the storm made landfall in Punta Gorda, Belize. Early on November 22, the system dissipated over central Guatemala.
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Wikipedia