Savannah, Georgia's History with Tropical Systems

Current Weather | Savannah major hurricanes video

(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)

Savannah most likely to be hit by a hurricane between September 7th and September 13th

Years within or near core

1871ts
1871bdtsbr
1871bdts
1873bdts
1874
1878
1880bdtsbr
1881
1882bdts
1884ts
1885m
1885bdts
1886bdtsbr
1888bdts
1888tsbr
1893bdts
1893-2m
1894
1894bdts
1896bd
1898
1898brm
1906ts
1907-2bdts
1910ts
1911
1912ts
1914tsbr
1916ts
1919ts
1924bdts
1924bdxtropst
1927ts
1928bd
1934ts
1935bdtsbr
1940
1941bdtsbr
1944ts
1945ts
1947bdts
1947
1952
1953bdxtropts
1957bdts
1959m
1960bdts
1963br
1964ts
1964bdts
1966bdts
1968tsbr
1972subtsbr
1976subts
1979
1981tsbr
1982subtsbr
1984tsbr
1985
1985bdts
1988ts
1989brm
1996bdxtropst
1998bdxtropst
1999
2005tsbr
2006tsbdbr
2007xtropstbd
2013bdts
2016-3bdts
2016
2017tsbd
2018bdtsbr
2019brm
2021tsbd
2022-2br
2023bdts
2024bdts
2024bdbr

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

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

Able
Florence
Gracie
Brenda
Ginny
Cleo
Dora
Alma
Abby
Alpha
David
Dennis
Isidore
Bob
Kate
Chris
Hugo
Josephine
Earl
Irene
Tammy
Alberto
Andrea
Colin
Hermine
Julia
Matthew
Irma
Michael
Dorian
Elsa
Ian
Nicole
Idalia
Debby
Helene

Tropical Storm to Hurricane ratio

TS = 58, 69.51%
H = 26, 30.49%

only 8.97% of all tropical systems affecting Savannah are major hurricanes this includes brushes

Longest gap between storms

6 years 1990-1995

How often this area gets affected?

Brushed or hit every 1.82 years

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

Once every 8.05 years. (19 hits) State stats

Average years between direct major hurricane hits. (major hurricane in advisory upon passage)

Once every 51 years. (3 hits)

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

96 mph

Statistically when this area should be affected next

Before the end of 2026

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

Last affected by

2024 September 27th Hurricane Helene brushes to the west with 75 mph winds while moving north.

This area's hurricane history

1874 September 28th, 85 mph from the south-southwest
1878 September 12th, 90 mph from the south
1881 August 27th, 105 mph from the east-southeast 700 killed in Georgia & South Carolina. Savannah lowest barometer 29.08 inHg / 985 mb at 9:20 pm, wind instrument blew away at 80 mph.
1885 August 25th, just east while moving North with 105 mph winds.
1893 August 28th, 115 mph from the south. 2,000 killed from 16 foot storm surge, pressure 940 mb with a huge radius of maximum winds. This was a very large wind field and much larger than Hugo. Additionally, the storm made landfall coincident with the full moon phase the moon reaching full at 3:42 am on the 27th. The highest measured wind in Savannah was 72 mph due to land friction before eye passing over with 10 mph winds. This hurricane was moving at a forward speed of 15 mph while hitting and made landfall at 11:00 pm. Wind field map | Hit map
1893 October 13th, 120 mph just east from the south. Hit map
1894 September 27th, 90 mph from the south.
1896 September 29th, 95 mph from the south-southwest.
1898 August 31, 85 mph from the southeast center passed over Tybee Island. A small but vicious hurricane with a maximum wind velocity of 84 mph at Tybee Island. Roofs were ripped off houses and extensive flooding occurred.
1911 August 28th, pressure 29.02 inHg, 95 mph from the east.
1928 September 18th, 80 mph from the south-southwest.
1940 August 11th 50 killed as a category 1 75 mph hits the area from the east-southeast, most killed from flooding in Southeast states.
1947 October 15th 105 mph (HURDAT) from the east gusts 95 mph 1 killed, pressure 28.76. This hurricane was cloud seeded, A-B-17 bomber dropped 180 pounds of dry ice into the Hurricane off the coast of South Carolina & many blamed that for the change in direction as she moved back west & hit. A 12 ft storm surge reported here with mass evacuations keeping casualties at a minimum. Damage reports
1952 August 30th Hurricane Able from the southeast with 105 mph winds
1959 September 29th, 125 mph Hurricane Gracie hits just north from the southeast
1979 September 4th Hurricane David hits with 90 mph winds from the south pressure 28.65 no major damage. Damage photos
1985 July 24th Hurricane Bob hits with 75 mph winds from the south
1999 October 17th, 75 mph Hurricane Irene passes to the east from the south-southwest.
2016 October 8th Hurricane Matthew hits with 105 mph winds while moving north with 105 mph winds. More than 370,000 in Georgia were without power after hit.Storm surge flooding along the coast of Georgia, at least 3 dead and inundated roads that had been ordered closed. The NOS gauge at Fort Pulaski, to the east of Savannah, recorded a peak water level of 5.05 feet above Mean Higher High Water (MHHW), which is a record for that site. Notable rainfall amounts measured were 17.48 inches at Hunter Army Air Field in Savannah, Georgia. In Savannah, storm surge inundation flooded the parking lot of the Hyatt Regency Hotel and also flooded a ballroom with up to 18 inches of saltwater. Floodwaters from the Savannah River inundated a restaurant on the east end of River Street and there were eyewitness reports of the hulls of boats tied up at the River Street Bridge rising to the level of the railings along the river (per NHC) Radar animation (Brian McNoldy, Univ. of Miami, Rosenstiel School) | Best models | Matthew timeline | NHC final report | USGS surge info

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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......