Cienfuegos, Cuba's History with Tropical Systems

(br) = Brush (ts) = Tropical Storm (bd) = Back Door, meaning coming from over land from opposite coast. Not all names are noted. Also, storms before 1950 were not named. Not every stat on every storm description is given. (since 1871)

Cienfuegos most likely to be hit by a hurricane between September 21st and September 27th

Years within or near core

1875
1876tsbr
1878bdtsbr
1882bd
1888bdm
1891tsbr
1894
1895
1899br
1900bdts
1904ts
1906brm
1917brm
1921bdts
1926ts
1930ts
1933br
1935m
1938bdts
1950tsbd
1950br
1952m
1953ts
1958-2ts
1966
1979tsbr
1981ts
1991tsbr
1996br
2001m
2005m
2008ts
2008
2010ts
2017bdbrm
2020tsbr
2021tsbr
2024br

39 times in 153 years (as of end of 2024)

Names from list above (F storms most likely to impact the area)

Baker
Easy
Fox
Ella
Janice
Inez
Frederic
Dennis
Fabian
Lili
Michelle
Dennis
Fay
Ike
Nicole
Irma
Laura
Elsa
Rafael

Tropical Storm to Hurricane ratio

TS = 20, 51.28%
H = 19, 48.72%

only 22.86% of all tropical systems affecting Cienfuegos are major hurricanes this includes brushes

Longest gap between storms

12 years 1966-1979

How often this area gets affected?

Brushed or hit every 3.92 years

Average years between direct hurricane hits. (hurricane force winds for at least a few hours)

Once every 12.75 years. (12 hits)

Average years between major hurricane hits.

Once every 30.6 years. (5 hits)

Average MPH of hurricane hits. (based on sustained winds from advisories, not gusts)

105 mph

Statistically when this area should be affected next

Before the end of 2028

This is just a statistical average & does not mean the area will be affected by that year.

Last affected by

2024 November 6th Hurricane Rafael brushes well west by 93 miles with 110 mph winds while moving northwest.

This area's hurricane history

1875 90 mph September 13th from the southeast 170 killed in Cuba
1882 September 5th, backdoor 85 mph from the east-northeast
1888 September 4th 115 mph to the north while moving west
1894 September 24th 80 mph from the east-southeast 200 killed in Cuba.
1895 October 21st 95 mph from the south-southwest
1935 September 28th, 120 mph from the south pressure 28.31 35 killed 100 injured in Cuba with heavy damage in Cienfuegos mostly by flooding.
1952 October 24th, Hurricane Fox a category 4 hits with 145 mph winds (HURDAT), over 600 killed. Before landfall a hurricane hunter aircraft lost paint on its wings do to the rain being so heavy in the eyewall. 18 mile wide eye reported pressure 27.75 inHg
1966 October 1st Hurricane Inez 75 mph from the east-southeast passes to east. NHC Wallet
1996 October 18th Hurricane Lili 90 mph 50 miles to northwest pressure 28.79 inHg sporadic heavy damage as 10,000 homes were badly damaged. NHC report
2001 November 4th Major Hurricane Michelle hits just northeast moving in from the southwest with 135 mph winds.Thousands of homes had roofs blown off 5 killed in area as of November 6th. Pressure 28.00 inHg. A 9 to 10 foot storm surge was reported in coastal areas. A reported 43,076 dwellings damaged, principally in the provinces of La Habana, Matanzas, Cienfuegos and Sancti Spiritus. 1,520 social/economic infrastructure damaged such as hospitals, schools, industry and agriculture installations. Loss and damage to agriculture including banana, citrus, sugar cane, and yucca. Hundreds of telephone and communications poles as well as some communication towers broken. Newspaper article | Ham radio news reports
2005, Dennis made landfall near the port city of Cienfuegos at 1 p.m. Friday, July 8th, 2005 with 145 mph winds downing power lines, knocking the city's TV station antenna to the ground and stripping the roofs from homes on Friday. It barreled over farming communities and small towns as it churned northward toward Havana. Official reported wind measurments showed 91 mph sustained winds with gusts to 108 mph and a pressure of 982 mb. NHC report
2008 September 8th, Hurricane Ike passes by just to the south with 80 mph winds while moving west-northwest. Gusts here reported around 74 mph pressure 989 mb. Ike model history | Radar animation

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Stat sources:

Text Sources:

"Divine Wind" by Kerry Emanuel
"Florida Hurricanes and Tropical Storms" by John M. Williams and Iver W. Duedall
"Florida's Hurricane History" by Jay Barnes
"Hurricane Almanac" by Bryan Norcross
HurricaneCity.com calculations by Jim Williams
"Hurricanes and the Middle Atlantic States" by Rick Schwartz
"Hurricane Watch" by Dr. Bob Sheets and Jack Williams
"Inside the Hurricane" by Pete Davies
"Isaac's Storm" by Erik Larson
"Killer 'Cane" by Robert Mykle
"Lunatic Wind" by William Price Fox
Miami Herald newspaper (microfilm)
"Path of Destruction" by John McQuaid and Mark Schleifstein
Sun Sentinel newspaper (microfilm)
"The Major Hurricanes To Affect The Bahamas" by Wayne Neely
"The Ship and the Storm" by Jim Carrier
Plus many more......