Tropical Cyclone Climatology for SE TX

Tropical Cyclone Climatology for the Upper Texas Coast

The following is a history of tropical storms and hurricanes that have passed within 75 miles of the Houston/Galveston National Weather Service Office's county warning area from 1886 up to the end of the 2019 season.

The area has a rich history of tropical cyclone hits, including the infamous 1900 Galveston hurricane, the deadliest natural disaster in United States history, Tropical Storm Claudette (1979), which produced 43 inches of rain in 24 hours in Alvin (highest total as of January 2020 is 49.69 inches set in April 14-15, 2018 in Waipa Garden, Kauai, Hawaii), Tropical Storm Allison (2001) which devastated the Houston area while becoming the costliest tropical storm in United States history, Hurricane Ike (2008) which produced a deadly and destructive storm surge along the upper Texas coast, Hurricane Harvey (2017), which produced unprecedented flooding in Houston and surrounding areas and historic rainfall producer Tropical Storm Imelda (2019), which broke several rainfall records in the United States that lead to devastating flooding.

The information for this climatology study was compiled from several sources to give the best and most accurate information. This study includes a decade by decade analysis of individual tropical storms and hurricanes, and a monthly climatological analysis of system origin. A brief summary of each tropical cyclone's effect on Southeast Texas is also included.

Several systems had intensity discrepancies as they approached the Texas coast. This was due to the analyses of several sources used in this study. Those tropical cyclones are identified with an "*".

This in-depth climatology study will help those living along and near this vulnerable stretch of coastline to better understand the history of tropical cyclones affecting the NWS Houston/Galveston county warning area during the previous 134 years. As future tropical storms and hurricanes will undoubtedly affect the area, this study's analysis and documentation will be updated.

Maps of tropical cyclones that have affected the upper Texas coast broken down by the decade (updated thru 2019):
1880s	1890s	1900s	1910s
1920s	1930s	1940s	1950s
1960s	1970s	1980s	1990s
2000s	2010s	2020s	2030s

Detailed summaries of tropical cyclones that have affected the upper Texas coast broken down by the decade (updated thru 2019):
1880s	1890s	1900s	1910s
1920s	1930s	1940s	1950s
1960s	1970s	1980s	1990s
2000s	2010s	2020s	2030s