Hurricane Ione (1955)

Track map, landfall & timeline · Atlantic · September 10–27, 1955

Peak wind

138 mph

222 km/h · Sep 17

Peak category

Cat 4

Saffir–Simpson

Lowest pressure

938 mb

Landfalls

North Carolina

Lifetime

16.8 d

Sep 10 – Sep 27

Distance

7,359 mi

11,840 km

ACE

21.7

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 Ione

Hurricane Ione (1955) was a Category 4 hurricane of the 1955 Atlantic season. It formed on September 10, 1955, reached its peak of 138 mph (222 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 938 mb on September 17, 1955, and made landfall near Morehead City, North Carolina on September 19, 1955 as a Category 2 hurricane (104 mph). It rapidly intensified by 46 mph in 24 hours (to 138 mph on September 17, 1955). The storm lasted 16.8 days and travelled about 7,359 miles (11,840 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
September 19, 1955 · 11:00 UTC	near Morehead City, North Carolina	Cat 2 104 mph	955 mb

Closest approach to major cities

City	Distance to center	When (UTC)	Storm strength then
Norfolk, Virginia	35 mi	Sep 20 · 05:00 UTC	Cat 1 75 mph
Chesapeake, Virginia	34 mi	Sep 20 · 05:00 UTC	Cat 1 75 mph
Newport News, Virginia	47 mi	Sep 20 · 05:00 UTC	Cat 1 75 mph
Virginia Beach, Virginia	23 mi	Sep 20 · 06:00 UTC	Cat 1 75 mph
East Hampton, Virginia	46 mi	Sep 20 · 06:00 UTC	Cat 1 75 mph
Hampton, Virginia	46 mi	Sep 20 · 06:00 UTC	Cat 1 75 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 69 positions

Date · UTC	Status	Wind	Pressure	Position	Nearest place
Sep 10 06:00	TD	29 mph	—	13.6°N 41.4°W	open ocean
Sep 10 12:00	TS	40 mph	—	14.0°N 43.0°W	open ocean
Sep 10 18:00	TS	40 mph	—	14.4°N 44.6°W	open ocean
Sep 11 00:00	TS	40 mph	—	14.8°N 46.2°W	open ocean
Sep 11 06:00	TS	40 mph	—	15.1°N 47.8°W	open ocean
Sep 11 12:00	TS	40 mph	—	15.2°N 49.3°W	open ocean
Sep 11 18:00	TS	40 mph	—	14.9°N 50.8°W	open ocean
Sep 12 00:00	TS	40 mph	—	14.6°N 52.1°W	open ocean
Sep 12 06:00	TS	40 mph	—	14.3°N 53.4°W	open ocean
Sep 12 12:00	TS	40 mph	—	14.0°N 54.6°W	open ocean
Sep 12 18:00	TS	40 mph	1007 mb	14.0°N 55.8°W	open ocean
Sep 13 00:00	TS	40 mph	—	14.4°N 56.9°W	open ocean
Sep 13 06:00	TS	40 mph	—	14.9°N 58.0°W	165 mi NE of Bridgetown, Barbados
Sep 13 12:00	TS	40 mph	—	15.5°N 58.8°W	153 mi ENE of Le François, Martinique
Sep 13 18:00	TS	46 mph	—	16.1°N 59.3°W	131 mi E of Saint-François, Guadeloupe
Sep 14 00:00	TS	52 mph	—	16.7°N 59.7°W	109 mi ENE of Saint-François, Guadeloupe
Sep 14 06:00	TS	52 mph	—	17.3°N 60.1°W	106 mi NE of Le Moule, Guadeloupe
Sep 14 12:00	TS	58 mph	1001 mb	17.9°N 60.6°W	98 mi ENE of Saint John’s, Antigua and Barbuda
Sep 14 18:00	TS	58 mph	1000 mb	18.5°N 61.4°W	100 mi NNE of Saint John’s, Antigua and Barbuda
Sep 15 00:00	TS	63 mph	—	19.3°N 62.3°W	141 mi NNE of Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis
Sep 15 06:00	Cat 1	75 mph	—	20.6°N 63.3°W	open ocean
Sep 15 12:00	Cat 1	81 mph	990 mb	21.9°N 64.4°W	open ocean
Sep 15 18:00	Cat 1	81 mph	—	22.8°N 65.6°W	open ocean
Sep 16 00:00	Cat 1	86 mph	—	23.3°N 67.0°W	open ocean
Sep 16 06:00	Cat 1	86 mph	—	23.7°N 68.3°W	open ocean
Sep 16 12:00	Cat 1	86 mph	985 mb	24.1°N 69.3°W	open ocean
Sep 16 18:00	Cat 1	92 mph	—	24.6°N 70.2°W	open ocean
Sep 17 00:00	Cat 2	98 mph	—	25.1°N 71.1°W	open ocean
Sep 17 06:00	Cat 2	104 mph	971 mb	25.7°N 71.9°W	open ocean
Sep 17 12:00	Cat 3	121 mph	950 mb	26.3°N 72.5°W	open ocean
Sep 17 18:00	Cat 4	138 mph	938 mb	27.0°N 73.2°W	open ocean
Sep 18 00:00	Cat 4	138 mph	—	27.9°N 74.0°W	open ocean
Sep 18 06:00	Cat 4	132 mph	—	28.8°N 74.7°W	open ocean
Sep 18 12:00	Cat 3	127 mph	943 mb	29.8°N 75.3°W	open ocean
Sep 18 18:00	Cat 3	121 mph	—	31.2°N 75.8°W	open ocean
Sep 19 00:00	Cat 3	115 mph	—	32.6°N 76.1°W	149 mi SE of Masonboro, North Carolina
Sep 19 06:00	Cat 2	109 mph	—	33.8°N 76.5°W	78 mi SSE of Havelock, North Carolina
Sep 19 11:00	Cat 2 LANDFALL	104 mph	955 mb	34.7°N 76.7°W	17 mi SE of Havelock, North Carolina
Sep 19 12:00	Cat 2	104 mph	955 mb	34.8°N 76.7°W	13 mi ESE of Havelock, North Carolina
Sep 19 18:00	Cat 1	86 mph	—	35.3°N 76.7°W	24 mi NE of New Bern, North Carolina
Sep 20 00:00	Cat 1	75 mph	—	36.0°N 76.4°W	22 mi SSW of Elizabeth City, North Carolina
Sep 20 06:00	Cat 1	75 mph	976 mb	36.6°N 75.7°W	23 mi SE of Virginia Beach, Virginia
Sep 20 12:00	Cat 1	81 mph	—	37.1°N 74.2°W	100 mi E of Virginia Beach, Virginia
Sep 20 18:00	Cat 1	86 mph	982 mb	38.0°N 72.0°W	161 mi SE of Atlantic City, New Jersey
Sep 21 00:00	Cat 1	92 mph	976 mb	39.3°N 68.3°W	open ocean
Sep 21 06:00	Cat 1 extratropical	92 mph	—	41.5°N 64.0°W	open ocean
Sep 21 12:00	Cat 1 extratropical	86 mph	—	45.0°N 59.4°W	87 mi SSE of Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada
Sep 21 18:00	Cat 1 extratropical	86 mph	—	48.5°N 55.0°W	36 mi SSW of Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada
Sep 22 00:00	Cat 1 extratropical	81 mph	—	50.3°N 54.5°W	93 mi N of Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada
Sep 22 06:00	Cat 1 extratropical	81 mph	—	50.7°N 54.5°W	121 mi N of Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada
Sep 22 12:00	Cat 1 extratropical	75 mph	—	51.0°N 53.8°W	146 mi NNE of Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada
Sep 22 18:00	Cat 1 extratropical	75 mph	—	52.5°N 51.0°W	open ocean
Sep 23 00:00	TS extratropical	69 mph	—	53.4°N 46.8°W	open ocean
Sep 23 06:00	TS extratropical	63 mph	—	53.3°N 43.7°W	open ocean
Sep 23 12:00	TS extratropical	58 mph	—	53.1°N 40.6°W	open ocean
Sep 23 18:00	TS extratropical	52 mph	—	54.6°N 35.0°W	open ocean
Sep 24 00:00	TS extratropical	52 mph	—	57.2°N 29.3°W	open ocean
Sep 24 06:00	TS extratropical	52 mph	—	60.0°N 22.0°W	open ocean
Sep 24 12:00	TS extratropical	52 mph	—	62.5°N 15.5°W	open ocean
Sep 24 18:00	TS extratropical	46 mph	—	65.0°N 14.0°W	127 mi ESE of Akureyri, Iceland
Sep 25 00:00	TS extratropical	46 mph	—	67.5°N 11.5°W	open ocean
Sep 25 06:00	TS extratropical	40 mph	—	69.0°N 9.5°W	open ocean
Sep 25 12:00	TS extratropical	40 mph	—	70.0°N 8.0°W	open ocean
Sep 25 18:00	TS extratropical	40 mph	—	70.9°N 7.0°W	open ocean
Sep 26 00:00	TS extratropical	40 mph	—	71.6°N 7.0°W	open ocean
Sep 26 06:00	TS extratropical	40 mph	—	72.1°N 9.0°W	open ocean
Sep 26 12:00	TS extratropical	40 mph	—	72.5°N 12.0°W	open ocean
Sep 26 18:00	TD extratropical	35 mph	—	72.8°N 14.0°W	open ocean
Sep 27 00:00	TD extratropical	35 mph	—	73.0°N 15.0°W	open ocean

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

Questions

Frequently asked questions

When and where did Ione make landfall?

Ione made landfall once: near Morehead City, North Carolina on September 19, 1955 at 11:00 UTC, as a Category 2 hurricane with 104 mph winds.

What category was Ione?

At its peak on September 17, 1955, Ione was a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 138 mph (222 km/h) and a central pressure of 938 mb. At its first landfall it was a Category 2 hurricane.

How long did Ione last?

16.8 days, from September 10, 1955 to September 27, 1955, including 144 hours at hurricane strength (42 as a major hurricane). It travelled about 7,359 miles.

Where can I download the track data for Ione?

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 Ione

Year	Storm	Peak	Landfall
1955	Hurricane Ione · this page Atlantic	Cat 4 138 mph	North Carolina
1966	Tropical Storm Ione Eastern Pacific	TS 52 mph	—
1974	Hurricane Ione Eastern Pacific	Cat 3 115 mph	—	→

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

Strongest storms of 1955

Year	Storm	Peak	Landfall
1955	Hurricane Janet Atlantic	Cat 5 173 mph	Quintana Roo, Mexico, Veracruz, Mexico	→
1955	Hurricane Connie Atlantic	Cat 4 138 mph	North Carolina	→
1955	Hurricane Hilda Atlantic	Cat 3 121 mph	Quintana Roo, Mexico, Tamaulipas, Mexico	→
1955	Hurricane Katie Atlantic	Cat 2 109 mph	Dominican Republic	→
1955	Hurricane Diane Atlantic	Cat 2 104 mph	North Carolina	→
1955	Hurricane Flora Atlantic	Cat 2 104 mph	—	→
1955	Hurricane Edith Atlantic	Cat 2 98 mph	—	→
1955	Hurricane Gladys Atlantic	Cat 1 75 mph	Tamaulipas, Mexico	→

See every 1955 storm on one map →

Background reading: Hurricane Ione on Wikipedia.

← Previous Atlantic stormHurricane Gladys (1955)Next Atlantic storm →Hurricane Hilda (1955)

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