1940 South Carolina Hurricane

Track map, landfall & timeline · Atlantic · August 5–14, 1940

Peak wind
98 mph
157 km/h · Aug 11
Peak category
Cat 2
Saffir–Simpson
Lowest pressure
972 mb
Landfalls
1
South Carolina
Lifetime
9.0 d
Aug 5 – Aug 14
Distance
2,136 mi
3,436 km
ACE
10.5
storm energy

TD TS Cat 1 2 3 4 5 · dashed = post-tropical / remnant low. Click any point or table row to jump there.

01 · The story

What happened with 1940 South Carolina Hurricane

The 1940 South Carolina Hurricane was a Category 2 hurricane of the 1940 Atlantic season. It formed on August 5, 1940, 40 mi NNE of Charlotte Amalie, U.S. Virgin Islands, reached its peak of 98 mph (157 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 972 mb on August 11, 1940, and made landfall near Hilton Head Island, South Carolina on August 11, 1940 as a Category 2 hurricane (98 mph). The storm lasted 9.0 days and travelled about 2,136 miles (3,436 km).

02 · Intensity

Wind and pressure, hour by hour

Maximum sustained wind (mph) — hover or drag to scrub the map

03 · Impact

Landfall and cities in the path

Landfall (UTC)WhereStrengthPressure
August 11, 1940 · 20:00 UTCnear Hilton Head Island, South CarolinaCat 2 98 mph972 mb

Closest approach to major cities

CityDistance to centerWhen (UTC)Storm strength then
San Juan, Puerto Rico42 miAug 5 · 23:00 UTCTS 46 mph
Charleston, South Carolina51 miAug 11 · 18:00 UTCCat 2 98 mph
North Charleston, South Carolina55 miAug 11 · 18:00 UTCCat 2 98 mph
Savannah, Georgiadirect hitAug 11 · 22:00 UTCCat 1 86 mph
Columbus, Georgia69 miAug 12 · 18:00 UTCTD 35 mph
Athens, Georgia70 miAug 12 · 19:00 UTCTD 35 mph
Atlanta, Georgia16 miAug 12 · 23:00 UTCTD 35 mph
Chattanooga, Tennessee29 miAug 13 · 13:00 UTCTD 29 mph
East Chattanooga, Tennessee26 miAug 13 · 14:00 UTCTD 29 mph
Knoxville, Tennessee24 miAug 14 · 04:00 UTCTD 29 mph

Distance from the city to the storm’s center, interpolated hourly between official fixes. Damaging winds, surge and rain reach far beyond the center.

04 · Timeline

Every official fix 38 positions

Date · UTCStatusWindPressurePositionNearest place
Aug 5 18:00TS 46 mph—18.9°N 64.8°W40 mi NNE of Charlotte Amalie, U.S. Virgin Islands
Aug 6 00:00TS 46 mph—19.1°N 66.4°W48 mi NNW of San Juan, Puerto Rico
Aug 6 06:00TS 46 mph—19.8°N 68.2°W85 mi N of Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
Aug 6 12:00TS 46 mph—20.6°N 70.0°W71 mi NE of Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
Aug 6 18:00TS 46 mph1003 mb21.6°N 71.4°W56 mi ESE of Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands
Aug 7 00:00TS 46 mph—22.0°N 72.6°W27 mi NW of Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands
Aug 7 06:00TS 52 mph—22.5°N 73.4°W89 mi NW of Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands
Aug 7 12:00TS 52 mph—23.2°N 73.7°W135 mi NW of Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands
Aug 7 18:00TS 52 mph—24.3°N 73.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 8 00:00TS 58 mph—25.3°N 73.9°Wopen ocean
Aug 8 06:00TS 63 mph—26.2°N 73.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 8 12:00TS 63 mph—27.1°N 73.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 8 18:00TS 69 mph—27.9°N 73.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 9 00:00TS 69 mph—28.4°N 73.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 9 06:00Cat 1 75 mph—28.9°N 74.2°Wopen ocean
Aug 9 12:00Cat 1 75 mph—29.2°N 74.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 9 18:00Cat 1 81 mph—29.4°N 75.3°Wopen ocean
Aug 10 00:00Cat 1 81 mph—29.5°N 75.9°Wopen ocean
Aug 10 06:00Cat 1 86 mph—29.6°N 76.4°Wopen ocean
Aug 10 12:00Cat 1 92 mph—29.9°N 76.9°Wopen ocean
Aug 10 18:00Cat 1 92 mph—30.3°N 77.4°Wopen ocean
Aug 11 00:00Cat 2 98 mph—30.7°N 77.9°W185 mi SE of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
Aug 11 06:00Cat 2 98 mph—31.3°N 78.5°W131 mi SE of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
Aug 11 12:00Cat 2 98 mph—31.8°N 79.3°W77 mi SSE of Charleston, South Carolina
Aug 11 18:00Cat 2 98 mph972 mb32.1°N 80.3°W26 mi ESE of Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
Aug 11 20:00Cat 2 LANDFALL 98 mph972 mb32.1°N 80.8°Wnear Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
Aug 12 00:00Cat 1 75 mph977 mb32.2°N 81.3°Wnear Pooler, Georgia
Aug 12 06:00TS 58 mph—32.4°N 82.4°W13 mi N of Vidalia, Georgia
Aug 12 12:00TS 40 mph996 mb32.6°N 83.5°Wnear Warner Robins, Georgia
Aug 12 18:00TD 35 mph1003 mb33.2°N 84.2°Wnear Griffin, Georgia
Aug 13 00:00TD 35 mph1005 mb33.7°N 84.7°Wnear South Fulton, Georgia
Aug 13 06:00TD 35 mph1007 mb34.3°N 84.8°Wnear Cartersville, Georgia
Aug 13 12:00TD 29 mph1008 mb34.9°N 84.8°W13 mi NE of Dalton, Georgia
Aug 13 18:00TD 29 mph—35.5°N 84.8°W12 mi WNW of Athens, Tennessee
Aug 14 00:00TD 29 mph—36.0°N 84.6°W18 mi W of Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Aug 14 06:00TD 29 mph—36.4°N 83.9°W18 mi SW of Middlesboro, Kentucky
Aug 14 12:00TD 29 mph—36.8°N 82.9°W26 mi NW of Kingsport, Tennessee
Aug 14 18:00TD 29 mph—37.0°N 81.8°W35 mi NE of Bristol, Tennessee

⬇ Download track data (CSV) · public-domain NOAA best track

Questions

Frequently asked questions

When and where did 1940 South Carolina Hurricane make landfall?

1940 South Carolina Hurricane made landfall once: near Hilton Head Island, South Carolina on August 11, 1940 at 20:00 UTC, as a Category 2 hurricane with 98 mph winds.

What category was 1940 South Carolina Hurricane?

At its peak on August 11, 1940, 1940 South Carolina Hurricane was a Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 98 mph (157 km/h) and a central pressure of 972 mb. At its first landfall it was a Category 2 hurricane.

How long did 1940 South Carolina Hurricane last?

9.0 days, from August 5, 1940 to August 14, 1940, including 72 hours at hurricane strength. It travelled about 2,136 miles.

Where can I download the track data for 1940 South Carolina Hurricane?

The 6-hourly positions, winds, pressure and wind radii are available as CSV on this page (track.csv) — they come from the NOAA National Hurricane Center's HURDAT2 database and are in the public domain.

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