8 Most Disastrous Hurricanes on Record

As we enter hurricane season, here are eight of the most disastrous hurricanes to strike the Atlantic basin in no particular order.

Watch the 2-hour Series Premiere of HURRICANE MAN Sunday, September 15 at 9P on Science Channel and on SCIgo.

By: Janet Lee

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Hurricane Maria (2017)

The most recent hurricane on this list, Hurricane Maria is the third costliest in U.S. history. Maria’s pressure recorded 908 millibars when its eye was located south of St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands. This tropical cyclone’s flooding caused severe destruction of infrastructure on Puerto Rico and St. Croix.

Hurricane Dean (2007)

Hurricane Dean not only recorded a minimum pressure of 905 millibars but also made two landfalls in Mexico, one in the Yucatan Peninsula and the other in Veracruz. This Category 5 hurricane resulted in over 20 deaths in Haiti and Mexico.

Hurricane Katrina (2005)

Katrina was the first of three record-breaking storms of the 2005 hurricane season that had a particularly low pressure at the Atlantic basin. Its winds weakened before landfall, but Hurricane Katrina caused a 27.8 foot storm that devastated the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

Hurricane Mitch (1998)

One of the deadliest tropical cyclones on record, Hurricane Mitch unleashed more than 50 inches of rain. Flash floods washed away 70 percent of Honduras’ gross domestic product. More than 10,000 people passed away in Central America, most of them in Honduras and Nicaragua.

Hurricane Wilma (2005)

Hurricane Wilma, the first “W” name tropical cyclone, is the most intense Atlantic hurricane on record, causing an estimated $21 billion in damage. Wilma reached a pressure of 980 millibars over the northwest Caribbean, and its eye contracted to two miles in diameter, the smallest of an Atlantic hurricane.

Hurricane Gilbert (1988)

Gilbert, a Category 3 hurricane, caused a damage of over $4 billion over the eastern Caribbean. This hurricane hit Cozumel, Mexico with a landfall pressure of 900 millibars, reaching 3 miles of inland in the Cancún Cozumel area.

Hurricane Camille (1969)

Coming at a central pressure of 900 millibars, Hurricane Camille is the second strongest landfalling hurricane by pressure in U.S. history. It struck the Mississippi Gulf Coast and killed 113 people in Virginia with mudslides.

Labor Day Hurricane (1935)

The Labor Day Hurricane is the only one to make landfall with a pressure below 900 millibars. This cyclone approached the Florida Keys with a central pressure of 892 millibars and followed a narrow path, damaging all rail and roads across the island.