Hurricane How (1951)

Track map, landfall & timeline · Atlantic · September 29 – October 11, 1951

Peak wind

98 mph

157 km/h · Oct 4

Peak category

Cat 2

Saffir–Simpson

Lowest pressure

963 mb

Landfalls

Florida

Lifetime

12.8 d

Sep 29 – Oct 11

Distance

6,998 mi

11,260 km

ACE

10.7

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 How

Hurricane How (1951) was a Category 2 hurricane of the 1951 Atlantic season. It formed on September 29, 1951, 77 mi ESE of Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Mexico, reached its peak of 98 mph (157 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 963 mb on October 4, 1951, and made landfall 13 mi S of Rotonda West, Florida on October 2, 1951 as a tropical storm (63 mph). It rapidly intensified by 34 mph in 24 hours (to 86 mph on October 3, 1951). The storm lasted 12.8 days and travelled about 6,998 miles (11,260 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)	Where	Strength	Pressure
October 2, 1951 · 10:00 UTC	13 mi S of Rotonda West, Florida	TS 63 mph	—

Closest approach to major cities

City	Distance to center	When (UTC)	Storm strength then
Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico	10 mi	Sep 29 · 07:00 UTC	TD 29 mph
Cape Coral, Florida	13 mi	Oct 2 · 11:00 UTC	TS 58 mph
Port Saint Lucie, Florida	12 mi	Oct 2 · 17:00 UTC	TS 57 mph
West Palm Beach, Florida	55 mi	Oct 2 · 17:00 UTC	TS 57 mph
Palm Bay, Florida	42 mi	Oct 2 · 17:00 UTC	TS 57 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 53 positions

Date · UTC	Status	Wind	Pressure	Position	Nearest place
Sep 29 00:00	TD	29 mph	—	20.2°N 85.8°W	77 mi ESE of Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Sep 29 06:00	TD	29 mph	—	21.1°N 86.6°W	17 mi ESE of Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Sep 29 12:00	TD	29 mph	—	21.9°N 87.2°W	55 mi NNW of Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Sep 29 18:00	TD	29 mph	—	22.7°N 87.3°W	109 mi NNW of Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Sep 30 00:00	TD	29 mph	—	23.3°N 87.3°W	150 mi N of Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Sep 30 06:00	TD	35 mph	—	23.9°N 87.4°W	open ocean
Sep 30 12:00	TD	35 mph	—	24.5°N 87.5°W	open ocean
Sep 30 18:00	TS	40 mph	—	25.0°N 87.6°W	open ocean
Oct 1 00:00	TS	40 mph	—	25.5°N 87.7°W	open ocean
Oct 1 06:00	TS	40 mph	—	25.8°N 87.6°W	open ocean
Oct 1 12:00	TS	46 mph	1003 mb	26.1°N 86.8°W	open ocean
Oct 1 18:00	TS	46 mph	—	26.3°N 86.0°W	open ocean
Oct 2 00:00	TS	52 mph	—	26.4°N 84.8°W	154 mi WSW of Sarasota, Florida
Oct 2 06:00	TS	63 mph	—	26.6°N 83.3°W	63 mi WSW of Venice, Florida
Oct 2 10:00	TS LANDFALL	63 mph	—	26.7°N 82.3°W	24 mi WNW of Cape Coral, Florida
Oct 2 12:00	TS	52 mph	—	26.8°N 81.7°W	13 mi NNW of Lehigh Acres, Florida
Oct 2 18:00	TS	58 mph	—	27.6°N 80.1°W	17 mi NE of Fort Pierce, Florida
Oct 3 00:00	TS	69 mph	—	28.8°N 78.7°W	126 mi ENE of Palm Bay, Florida
Oct 3 06:00	Cat 1	81 mph	—	30.1°N 77.3°W	open ocean
Oct 3 12:00	Cat 1	86 mph	982 mb	31.4°N 76.5°W	open ocean
Oct 3 18:00	Cat 1	92 mph	979 mb	32.1°N 76.1°W	176 mi SE of Masonboro, North Carolina
Oct 4 00:00	Cat 2	98 mph	—	32.8°N 75.7°W	156 mi SE of Masonboro, North Carolina
Oct 4 06:00	Cat 2	98 mph	—	33.6°N 75.2°W	131 mi SE of Havelock, North Carolina
Oct 4 12:00	Cat 2	98 mph	—	34.3°N 74.6°W	137 mi ESE of Havelock, North Carolina
Oct 4 18:00	Cat 1	92 mph	975 mb	34.9°N 74.0°W	159 mi SE of Elizabeth City, North Carolina
Oct 5 00:00	Cat 1	92 mph	—	35.4°N 73.4°W	175 mi SE of Virginia Beach, Virginia
Oct 5 06:00	Cat 1	92 mph	—	36.1°N 72.6°W	open ocean
Oct 5 12:00	Cat 2	98 mph	972 mb	36.9°N 71.6°W	open ocean
Oct 5 18:00	Cat 2	98 mph	—	37.7°N 70.4°W	open ocean
Oct 6 00:00	Cat 2	98 mph	—	38.4°N 69.2°W	open ocean
Oct 6 06:00	Cat 2	98 mph	—	39.1°N 67.6°W	open ocean
Oct 6 12:00	Cat 1 extratropical	92 mph	—	39.7°N 65.4°W	open ocean
Oct 6 18:00	Cat 1 extratropical	86 mph	963 mb	40.3°N 61.2°W	open ocean
Oct 7 00:00	Cat 1 extratropical	86 mph	—	41.2°N 56.7°W	open ocean
Oct 7 06:00	Cat 1 extratropical	86 mph	—	42.3°N 51.0°W	open ocean
Oct 7 12:00	Cat 1 extratropical	86 mph	—	43.5°N 45.5°W	open ocean
Oct 7 18:00	Cat 1 extratropical	86 mph	—	44.7°N 39.8°W	open ocean
Oct 8 00:00	Cat 1 extratropical	86 mph	—	46.4°N 34.0°W	open ocean
Oct 8 06:00	Cat 1 extratropical	86 mph	—	49.3°N 29.3°W	open ocean
Oct 8 12:00	Cat 1 extratropical	86 mph	—	52.3°N 26.3°W	open ocean
Oct 8 18:00	Cat 1 extratropical	86 mph	—	56.3°N 23.0°W	open ocean
Oct 9 00:00	Cat 1 extratropical	81 mph	—	59.3°N 21.0°W	open ocean
Oct 9 06:00	Cat 1 extratropical	75 mph	—	64.0°N 19.5°W	73 mi E of Reykjavík, Iceland
Oct 9 12:00	TS extratropical	69 mph	—	67.0°N 17.0°W	96 mi NNE of Akureyri, Iceland
Oct 9 18:00	TS extratropical	69 mph	—	70.0°N 13.0°W	open ocean
Oct 10 00:00	TS extratropical	63 mph	—	73.0°N 8.0°W	open ocean
Oct 10 06:00	TS extratropical	63 mph	—	75.5°N 2.0°W	open ocean
Oct 10 12:00	TS extratropical	58 mph	—	78.0°N 5.0°E	open ocean
Oct 10 18:00	TS extratropical	58 mph	—	79.5°N 14.0°E	open ocean
Oct 11 00:00	TS extratropical	58 mph	—	80.3°N 24.0°E	open ocean
Oct 11 06:00	TS extratropical	58 mph	—	80.8°N 35.0°E	open ocean
Oct 11 12:00	TS extratropical	58 mph	—	81.0°N 48.0°E	open ocean
Oct 11 18:00	TS extratropical	58 mph	—	81.0°N 63.0°E	open ocean

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

Questions

Frequently asked questions

When and where did How make landfall?

How made landfall once: 13 mi S of Rotonda West, Florida on October 2, 1951 at 10:00 UTC, as a tropical storm with 63 mph winds.

What category was How?

At its peak on October 4, 1951, How was a Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 98 mph (157 km/h) and a central pressure of 963 mb. At its first landfall it was a tropical storm.

How long did How last?

12.8 days, from September 29, 1951 to October 11, 1951, including 78 hours at hurricane strength. It travelled about 6,998 miles.

Where can I download the track data for How?

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.

Related storms

Keep exploring

Every storm named How

Year	Storm	Peak	Landfall
1950	Tropical Storm How Atlantic	TS 46 mph	—	→
1951	Hurricane How · this page Atlantic	Cat 2 98 mph	Florida

Names are recycled every six years unless a storm is so deadly or costly that the name is retired.

Strongest storms of 1951

Year	Storm	Peak	Landfall
1951	Hurricane Easy Atlantic	Cat 4 150 mph	—	→
1951	Hurricane Charlie Atlantic	Cat 4 132 mph	Quintana Roo, Mexico, Jamaica	→
1951	Hurricane Fox Atlantic	Cat 3 115 mph	—	→
1951	Hurricane Able Atlantic	Cat 1 92 mph	Bahamas	→
1951	Hurricane Dog Atlantic	Cat 1 92 mph	—	→
1951	Hurricane Jig Atlantic	Cat 1 75 mph	—	→
1951	Tropical Storm George Atlantic	TS 58 mph	Veracruz, Mexico	→

See every 1951 storm on one map →

Background reading: Hurricane How on Wikipedia.

← Previous Atlantic stormTropical Storm George (1951)Next Atlantic storm →Hurricane Jig (1951)

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