Past Hurricanes that affected Martin and St. Lucie Counties

 

July 30, -31 1933 - central Florida - A hurricane moved in from the Atlantic, making landfall near Ft. Pierce on the morning of the 30th, slowly crossed the peninsula, and exited into the Gulf of Mexico south of Tampa Bay on the afternoon of the 31st.

 

August 8, l928 - east central Florida - A Hurricane moved in from the Bahamas and made landfall near Stuart. Damage was heaviest from south Brevard to St. Lucie Counties. Houses were unroofed and citrus trees and large Oaks uprooted. Coastal highways were flooded and many bridges were undermined. Two people died.

 

August 2-4, 1995 - east central Florida and western Panhandle - Hurricane Erin made landfall near Sebastian Inlet in southern Brevard County early on the morning of the 2nd. Brevard County bore the brunt of the storm with wind gusts to 100 mph between Melbourne Beach and Cocoa Beach knocking down trees on houses, cars, and power lines. The winds damaged thousands of roofs and completely destroyed some roofs. As Erin moved through Orlando during the morning wind gusts to 60 mph downed trees on power lines, houses and cars. About one-half million people were without power initially, several thousand were without power for more than five days. Heavy rains of up to 8 inches in three hours on the backside of Erin hit Brevard County again on the afternoon of the 2nd causing widespread flooding of low lying areas. Many houses were flooded west and northwest of Melbourne and many roads were impassable for several days. Erin moved into the Gulf of Mexico on the afternoon of the 2nd as a tropical storm, but regained strength before making a second Florida landfall near Pensacola on the morning of the 4th with winds gusting to 110-mph. widespread wind damage to houses and business was reported. Large trees crashed into houses, cars, and power lines. Most people in the area were without power for several days. Damage in the Pensacola area was estimated at 300 million dollars. The only deaths directly associated with Erin were at sea. A 234 ft gambling/cruise ship sunk 90 miles off Cape Canaveral around 4AM on the 2nd killing 3. Five people were drown in the Gulf of Mexico.

 

August 17-18, 1881 - south and central Florida - A hurricane moved in from the Gulf of Mexico and made landfall near Naples. It crossed the peninsula and exited into the Atlantic near Vero Beach.

August 26-27, l949 - A Hurricane hit West Palm Beach, Stuart, and Lake Okeechobee - 2 died.

September 3-4, l979 - Florida Peninsula - Hurricane David - David moved through the Dominican Republic with winds to l65 mph, killing 1200, but weakened drastically before hitting Florida. David made landfall about 20 miles south of Melbourne with 90-mph winds. It was the first hurricane to strike the Cape Canaveral area since the hurricane of l926, but there was debate among longtime residents whether David was really at hurricane strength in Brevard Co. Residents had braced for a major hurricane, but David was officially only a minimal hurricane at landfall with the strongest winds remaining offshore. Tides were three to5 feet above normal near the eye track and l to 2 feet above normal elsewhere on the Florida east coast. Light to moderate beach erosion occurred along most of the coast. Severe erosion was reported in Brevard County and south Volusia County. Agricultural losses were substantial, and probably exceeded 25 million dollars. The principal citrus damage was near the coastline, from Jupiter in Martin County to Oak Hill in Volusia County. Nursery plants sustained considerable damage in the storm track. Storm rainfall was quite variable with totals mostly six to 9 inches near the track of the eye, with a few reports to 11 inches. Elsewhere, rainfall was less than 5 inches. No deaths reported in Florida. Nine tornados were reported along the coast doing mostly minor damage and causing no serious injuries. The strongest of David's tornadoes destroyed or damaged about 50 trailers in Melbourne Beach, severely damaged a condominium, and did $1,500,000 damage to a shopping center on the afternoon of the 3rd.

September 28, l929 - Keys, southwest Florida, and Panhandle - Hurricane - The center passed over Key Largo on the 28th with winds estimated at l50 mph. There was ten-minute lull as the center passed. At the Everglades, the wind was estimated at l00 mph. The storm reached Panama City on the 30th. Although there was enormous damage at Nassau in the Bahamas and many lives were lost there, its course in Florida was such that damage was not excessive. Three lives were lost. This hurricane spawned 5 tornadoes over Dade and Broward Counties, injuring more than l6 people. - 1640 - Broward Co., Palm Beach Co., Martin. Co, - A hurricane spawned tornado unroofed or damaged buildings. Most of the injuries were from flying glass.

 

September 16-l7, l928 - south Florida & Lake Okeechobee - The 5th most intense land falling hurricane in U.S. history moved in from the Atlantic and across Lake Okeechobee's northern shore, sending a storm surge southward that flooded the low area south of the lake. At least 1836 migrant workers died in the flood, making this the second deadliest U.S. hurricane on record. In response to this storm, dikes were built around the lake to prevent future tragedies.

October 8-9, 1896 - south/central Florida - A hurricane made landfall near on the Gulf Coast near Punta Gorda and crossed the peninsula exiting into the Atlantic near Melbourne early on the 9th. This storm was responsible for 68 deaths.