Hurricane Charley (1986)

Track map, landfall & timeline · Atlantic · August 13–30, 1986

Peak wind
81 mph
130 km/h · Aug 18
Peak category
Cat 1
Saffir–Simpson
Lowest pressure
980 mb
Landfalls
1
North Carolina
Lifetime
16.5 d
Aug 13 – Aug 30
Distance
5,308 mi
8,541 km
ACE
5.6
storm energy
Deaths
15
per Wikidata

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 Charley

Hurricane Charley (1986) was a Category 1 hurricane of the 1986 Atlantic season. It formed on August 13, 1986, 29 mi SE of Tallahassee, Florida, reached its peak of 81 mph (130 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 980 mb on August 18, 1986, and made landfall 13 mi E of Morehead City, North Carolina on August 17, 1986 as a Category 1 hurricane (75 mph). The storm lasted 16.5 days and travelled about 5,308 miles (8,541 km). According to Wikidata, it caused 15 deaths.

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 17, 1986 · 14:00 UTC13 mi E of Morehead City, North CarolinaCat 1 75 mph990 mb

Closest approach to major cities

CityDistance to centerWhen (UTC)Storm strength then
Virginia Beach, Virginia21 miAug 18 · 01:00 UTCCat 1 80 mph
Cardiff, United Kingdom68 miAug 26 · 01:00 UTCTS 52 mph
Liverpool, United Kingdom50 miAug 26 · 05:00 UTCTS 52 mph
Birmingham, United Kingdom29 miAug 26 · 06:00 UTCTS 52 mph
Coventry, United Kingdom40 miAug 26 · 06:00 UTCTS 52 mph
Manchester, United Kingdom40 miAug 26 · 07:00 UTCTS 52 mph
Leicester, United Kingdom34 miAug 26 · 07:00 UTCTS 52 mph
Sheffield, United Kingdom18 miAug 26 · 08:00 UTCTS 52 mph
Leeds, United Kingdom44 miAug 26 · 09:00 UTCTS 52 mph
Bradford, United Kingdom49 miAug 26 · 09:00 UTCTS 52 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 68 positions

Date · UTCStatusWindPressurePositionNearest place
Aug 13 12:00TD 12 mph1009 mb30.1°N 84.0°W29 mi SE of Tallahassee, Florida
Aug 13 18:00TD 12 mph1012 mb30.8°N 84.0°Wnear Thomasville, Georgia
Aug 14 00:00TD 12 mph1013 mb31.4°N 83.6°Wnear Tifton, Georgia
Aug 14 06:00TD 12 mph1014 mb32.0°N 83.1°W37 mi NNW of Douglas, Georgia
Aug 14 12:00TD 12 mph1015 mb32.5°N 82.5°W20 mi NNW of Vidalia, Georgia
Aug 14 18:00TD 12 mph1015 mb32.4°N 82.0°W13 mi WSW of Statesboro, Georgia
Aug 15 00:00TD 17 mph1013 mb32.3°N 81.2°W16 mi NNW of Savannah, Georgia
Aug 15 06:00TD 17 mph1013 mb32.3°N 80.0°W33 mi S of Charleston, South Carolina
Aug 15 12:00TD 35 mph1009 mb32.2°N 79.0°W65 mi SE of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
Aug 15 18:00TS 40 mph1007 mb32.2°N 78.5°W89 mi ESE of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
Aug 16 00:00TS 46 mph1004 mb32.3°N 78.1°W108 mi ESE of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
Aug 16 06:00TS 46 mph1002 mb32.4°N 77.9°W106 mi SSE of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Aug 16 12:00TS 52 mph999 mb32.6°N 77.6°W106 mi SE of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Aug 16 18:00TS 58 mph997 mb32.9°N 77.4°W98 mi SSE of Wilmington, North Carolina
Aug 17 00:00TS 63 mph995 mb33.2°N 77.1°W80 mi SSE of Masonboro, North Carolina
Aug 17 06:00TS 69 mph993 mb33.7°N 76.9°W64 mi ESE of Masonboro, North Carolina
Aug 17 12:00Cat 1 75 mph991 mb34.4°N 76.6°W37 mi SSE of Havelock, North Carolina
Aug 17 14:00Cat 1 LANDFALL 75 mph990 mb34.7°N 76.5°W26 mi ESE of Havelock, North Carolina
Aug 17 18:00Cat 1 75 mph988 mb35.4°N 76.2°W52 mi ENE of New Bern, North Carolina
Aug 18 00:00Cat 1 81 mph987 mb36.5°N 75.8°W26 mi SSE of Virginia Beach, Virginia
Aug 18 06:00Cat 1 75 mph990 mb37.4°N 75.2°W57 mi NE of Virginia Beach, Virginia
Aug 18 12:00TS 69 mph992 mb38.2°N 74.1°W59 mi ESE of Ocean Pines, Maryland
Aug 18 18:00TS 69 mph994 mb39.0°N 72.6°W101 mi ESE of Atlantic City, New Jersey
Aug 19 00:00TS 63 mph997 mb39.7°N 70.9°W117 mi SE of Hampton Bays, New York
Aug 19 06:00TS 58 mph999 mb40.4°N 69.1°W102 mi SSE of Harwich, Massachusetts
Aug 19 12:00TS 52 mph1000 mb40.9°N 67.5°W144 mi ESE of Harwich, Massachusetts
Aug 19 18:00TS 52 mph1002 mb41.3°N 65.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 20 00:00TS 46 mph1003 mb41.5°N 64.0°Wopen ocean
Aug 20 06:00TS 46 mph1004 mb41.6°N 62.5°Wopen ocean
Aug 20 12:00TS 46 mph1005 mb41.7°N 60.2°Wopen ocean
Aug 20 18:00TS 46 mph1005 mb41.7°N 58.4°Wopen ocean
Aug 21 00:00TS extratropical46 mph1000 mb41.6°N 56.6°Wopen ocean
Aug 21 06:00TS extratropical46 mph997 mb41.5°N 54.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 21 12:00TS extratropical46 mph992 mb41.4°N 53.2°Wopen ocean
Aug 21 18:00TS extratropical52 mph991 mb41.3°N 51.2°Wopen ocean
Aug 22 00:00TS extratropical52 mph990 mb41.3°N 49.4°Wopen ocean
Aug 22 06:00TS extratropical52 mph989 mb41.3°N 47.6°Wopen ocean
Aug 22 12:00TS extratropical52 mph989 mb41.4°N 46.2°Wopen ocean
Aug 22 18:00TS extratropical52 mph989 mb41.5°N 44.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 23 00:00TS extratropical52 mph988 mb41.8°N 43.2°Wopen ocean
Aug 23 06:00TS extratropical52 mph989 mb42.3°N 41.6°Wopen ocean
Aug 23 12:00TS extratropical52 mph989 mb43.0°N 39.6°Wopen ocean
Aug 23 18:00TS extratropical52 mph989 mb43.9°N 37.2°Wopen ocean
Aug 24 00:00TS extratropical52 mph990 mb44.9°N 34.4°Wopen ocean
Aug 24 06:00TS extratropical46 mph992 mb46.0°N 31.6°Wopen ocean
Aug 24 12:00TS extratropical46 mph995 mb47.0°N 28.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 24 18:00TS extratropical46 mph997 mb48.2°N 26.0°Wopen ocean
Aug 25 00:00TS extratropical46 mph999 mb49.2°N 21.6°Wopen ocean
Aug 25 06:00TS extratropical46 mph1000 mb50.0°N 16.4°Wopen ocean
Aug 25 12:00TS extratropical46 mph994 mb50.7°N 11.4°W124 mi SW of Killarney, Ireland
Aug 25 18:00TS extratropical58 mph988 mb51.4°N 7.2°W53 mi S of Trá Mhór, Ireland
Aug 26 00:00TS extratropical52 mph981 mb52.2°N 4.4°W20 mi SW of Aberystwyth, United Kingdom
Aug 26 06:00TS extratropical52 mph980 mb52.9°N 2.0°W11 mi SE of Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom
Aug 26 12:00TS extratropical52 mph982 mb53.6°N 0.0°Enear Grimsby, United Kingdom
Aug 26 18:00TS extratropical52 mph986 mb54.3°N 2.0°E90 mi E of Bridlington, United Kingdom
Aug 27 00:00TS extratropical52 mph984 mb55.0°N 3.7°E147 mi NNW of Den Helder, The Netherlands
Aug 27 06:00TS extratropical52 mph983 mb55.5°N 5.0°E135 mi W of Esbjerg, Denmark
Aug 27 12:00TS extratropical40 mph985 mb56.0°N 5.8°E109 mi WNW of Esbjerg, Denmark
Aug 27 18:00TS extratropical40 mph989 mb56.3°N 6.0°E100 mi W of Holstebro, Denmark
Aug 28 00:00TS extratropical40 mph989 mb56.6°N 6.0°E101 mi W of Holstebro, Denmark
Aug 28 06:00TS extratropical40 mph991 mb56.8°N 6.0°E101 mi SSW of Mandal, Norway
Aug 28 12:00TD extratropical35 mph998 mb57.0°N 6.0°E89 mi SW of Mandal, Norway
Aug 28 18:00TD extratropical35 mph999 mb57.0°N 5.5°E101 mi SW of Mandal, Norway
Aug 29 00:00TD extratropical29 mph1002 mb57.0°N 5.0°E107 mi SSW of Egersund, Norway
Aug 29 06:00TD extratropical23 mph1004 mb56.8°N 5.0°E120 mi SSW of Egersund, Norway
Aug 29 12:00TD extratropical23 mph1004 mb56.5°N 5.0°E139 mi W of Holstebro, Denmark
Aug 29 18:00TD extratropical17 mph1004 mb56.2°N 6.0°E101 mi W of Holstebro, Denmark
Aug 30 00:00TD extratropical17 mph1006 mb56.2°N 8.0°E26 mi WSW of Holstebro, Denmark

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

Questions

Frequently asked questions

When and where did Charley make landfall?

Charley made landfall once: 13 mi E of Morehead City, North Carolina on August 17, 1986 at 14:00 UTC, as a Category 1 hurricane with 75 mph winds.

What category was Charley?

At its peak on August 18, 1986, Charley was a Category 1 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 81 mph (130 km/h) and a central pressure of 980 mb. At its first landfall it was a Category 1 hurricane.

How long did Charley last?

16.5 days, from August 13, 1986 to August 30, 1986, including 24 hours at hurricane strength. It travelled about 5,308 miles.

How many people died in Charley?

Wikidata records 15 deaths for Hurricane Charley. Casualty figures for tropical cyclones vary between sources; see the linked encyclopedia article for context.

Where can I download the track data for Charley?

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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