Hurricane Keith (1988)

Track map, landfall & timeline · Atlantic · November 17–26, 1988

Peak wind

75 mph

120 km/h · Nov 26

Peak category

Cat 1

Saffir–Simpson

Lowest pressure

945 mb

Landfalls

Quintana Roo, Mexico · Florida

Lifetime

9.0 d

Nov 17 – Nov 26

Distance

4,806 mi

7,733 km

ACE

5.0

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 Keith

Hurricane Keith (1988) was a Category 1 hurricane of the 1988 Atlantic season. It formed on November 17, 1988, 230 mi S of Les Cayes, Haiti, reached its peak of 75 mph (120 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 945 mb on November 26, 1988, and made landfall 2 times — first near Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico on November 21, 1988 as a tropical storm (69 mph). Later landfalls: near Sarasota, Florida on November 23, 1988 as a tropical storm (63 mph). It rapidly intensified by 34 mph in 24 hours (to 69 mph on November 21, 1988). The storm lasted 9.0 days and travelled about 4,806 miles (7,733 km).

02 · Intensity

Wind and pressure, hour by hour

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

03 · Impact

Landfalls and cities in the path

Landfall (UTC)	Where	Strength	Pressure
November 21, 1988 · 08:00 UTC	near Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico	TS 69 mph	993 mb
November 23, 1988 · 07:00 UTC	near Sarasota, Florida	TS 63 mph	995 mb

Closest approach to major cities

City	Distance to center	When (UTC)	Storm strength then
Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico	direct hit	Nov 21 · 08:00 UTC	TS 69 mph
Clearwater, Florida	46 mi	Nov 23 · 06:00 UTC	TS 63 mph
St. Petersburg, Florida	32 mi	Nov 23 · 08:00 UTC	TS 59 mph
Cape Coral, Florida	64 mi	Nov 23 · 08:00 UTC	TS 59 mph
Tampa, Florida	36 mi	Nov 23 · 09:00 UTC	TS 54 mph
Brandon, Florida	30 mi	Nov 23 · 09:00 UTC	TS 54 mph
Lakeland, Florida	27 mi	Nov 23 · 10:00 UTC	TS 49 mph
Orlando, Florida	38 mi	Nov 23 · 13:00 UTC	TS 41 mph
Port Saint Lucie, Florida	68 mi	Nov 23 · 13:00 UTC	TS 41 mph
Palm Bay, Florida	19 mi	Nov 23 · 14:00 UTC	TS 42 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 39 positions

Date · UTC	Status	Wind	Pressure	Position	Nearest place
Nov 17 18:00	TD	35 mph	1008 mb	14.9°N 74.3°W	open ocean
Nov 18 00:00	TD	35 mph	1008 mb	15.0°N 75.5°W	open ocean
Nov 18 06:00	TD	35 mph	1008 mb	15.0°N 76.5°W	open ocean
Nov 18 12:00	TD	35 mph	1008 mb	15.0°N 77.7°W	open ocean
Nov 18 18:00	TD	35 mph	1008 mb	15.0°N 79.0°W	open ocean
Nov 19 00:00	TD	35 mph	1007 mb	15.0°N 79.9°W	open ocean
Nov 19 06:00	TD	35 mph	1007 mb	15.1°N 80.4°W	open ocean
Nov 19 12:00	TD	35 mph	1007 mb	15.2°N 81.2°W	167 mi ENE of Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua
Nov 19 18:00	TD	35 mph	1006 mb	15.5°N 81.8°W	147 mi NE of Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua
Nov 20 00:00	TD	35 mph	1005 mb	15.8°N 82.6°W	125 mi E of Brus Laguna, Honduras
Nov 20 06:00	TS	40 mph	1004 mb	16.3°N 83.4°W	81 mi ENE of Brus Laguna, Honduras
Nov 20 12:00	TS	46 mph	1002 mb	17.8°N 84.5°W	133 mi NNE of Iriona, Honduras
Nov 20 18:00	TS	52 mph	997 mb	19.1°N 85.4°W	139 mi SE of Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Nov 21 00:00	TS	69 mph	985 mb	19.8°N 86.1°W	73 mi SE of Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Nov 21 06:00	TS	69 mph	993 mb	20.7°N 86.6°W	26 mi ENE of Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Nov 21 08:00	TS LANDFALL	69 mph	993 mb	21.2°N 86.8°W	near Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Nov 21 12:00	TS	69 mph	993 mb	21.8°N 87.0°W	44 mi NNW of Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Nov 21 18:00	TS	69 mph	990 mb	22.4°N 87.2°W	88 mi NNW of Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Nov 22 00:00	TS	69 mph	993 mb	23.1°N 87.0°W	133 mi N of Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Nov 22 06:00	TS	63 mph	995 mb	23.8°N 86.8°W	181 mi N of Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Nov 22 12:00	TS	63 mph	995 mb	24.4°N 86.2°W	open ocean
Nov 22 18:00	TS	63 mph	993 mb	25.5°N 85.1°W	open ocean
Nov 23 00:00	TS	63 mph	994 mb	26.5°N 84.2°W	115 mi WSW of Venice, Florida
Nov 23 06:00	TS	63 mph	995 mb	27.3°N 82.8°W	17 mi W of Sarasota, Florida
Nov 23 07:00	TS LANDFALL	63 mph	995 mb	27.3°N 82.6°W	near Sarasota, Florida
Nov 23 12:00	TS	40 mph	999 mb	27.9°N 81.3°W	19 mi SSE of Poinciana, Florida
Nov 23 18:00	TS	46 mph	998 mb	28.9°N 79.8°W	64 mi ENE of Titusville, Florida
Nov 24 00:00	TS	58 mph	995 mb	29.7°N 77.7°W	open ocean
Nov 24 06:00	TS	63 mph	992 mb	31.0°N 75.2°W	open ocean
Nov 24 12:00	TS	69 mph	990 mb	32.5°N 70.5°W	open ocean
Nov 24 18:00	TS extratropical	63 mph	985 mb	34.0°N 66.0°W	137 mi NNW of Pembroke Parish, Bermuda
Nov 25 00:00	TS extratropical	58 mph	982 mb	36.0°N 60.0°W	open ocean
Nov 25 06:00	TS extratropical	58 mph	976 mb	39.0°N 54.0°W	open ocean
Nov 25 12:00	TS extratropical	58 mph	964 mb	40.0°N 49.0°W	open ocean
Nov 25 18:00	TS extratropical	63 mph	960 mb	44.0°N 45.0°W	open ocean
Nov 26 00:00	Cat 1 extratropical	75 mph	950 mb	48.0°N 43.0°W	open ocean
Nov 26 06:00	Cat 1 extratropical	75 mph	945 mb	52.0°N 42.0°W	open ocean
Nov 26 12:00	Cat 1 extratropical	75 mph	945 mb	52.5°N 44.0°W	open ocean
Nov 26 18:00	Cat 1 extratropical	75 mph	950 mb	52.0°N 46.0°W	open ocean

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

Questions

Frequently asked questions

When and where did Keith make landfall?

Keith made landfall 2 times: near Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico on November 21, 1988 at 08:00 UTC, as a tropical storm with 69 mph winds; near Sarasota, Florida on November 23, 1988 at 07:00 UTC, as a tropical storm with 63 mph winds.

What category was Keith?

At its peak on November 26, 1988, Keith was a Category 1 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 km/h) and a central pressure of 945 mb. At its first landfall it was a tropical storm.

How long did Keith last?

9.0 days, from November 17, 1988 to November 26, 1988. It travelled about 4,806 miles.

Where can I download the track data for Keith?

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 Keith

Year	Storm	Peak	Landfall
1988	Hurricane Keith · this page Atlantic	Cat 1 75 mph	Quintana Roo, Mexico, Florida
2000	Hurricane Keith Atlantic	Cat 4 138 mph	Tamaulipas, Mexico, Belize	→

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

Strongest storms of 1988

Year	Storm	Peak	Landfall
1988	Hurricane Gilbert Atlantic	Cat 5 184 mph	Quintana Roo, Mexico, Jamaica	→
1988	Hurricane Helene Atlantic	Cat 4 144 mph	—	→
1988	Hurricane Joan Atlantic	Cat 4 144 mph	Nicaragua, Venezuela	→
1988	Hurricane Hector Eastern Pacific	Cat 4 144 mph	—	→
1988	Hurricane Fabio Eastern Pacific	Cat 4 138 mph	—	→
1988	Hurricane Uleki Central Pacific	Cat 3 127 mph	—	→
1988	Hurricane Iva Eastern Pacific	Cat 2 104 mph	—	→
1988	Hurricane Lane Eastern Pacific	Cat 2 104 mph	—	→

See every 1988 storm on one map →

Background reading: Tropical Storm Keith on Wikipedia.

← Previous Atlantic stormHurricane Joan (1988)Next Atlantic storm →Tropical Storm Allison (1989)

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