Hurricane History Map

Cayman Islands storm history

72 storms have passed within 50 km of the Cayman Islands from 1853 to 2024, drawn on the map and coloured by intensity.

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Years1842 to 2026
Ocean basin

Choosing a minimum category hides storms with no wind speed in the record. To see which storms have passed near you, search a town or ZIP code, or tap the map.

Key
  • Tropical depression Winds below 34 knots (39 mph)
  • Tropical storm 34 to 63 knots (39 to 73 mph)
  • Category 1 64 to 82 knots (74 to 95 mph)
  • Category 2 83 to 95 knots (96 to 110 mph)
  • Category 3 96 to 112 knots (111 to 129 mph), major
  • Category 4 113 to 136 knots (130 to 156 mph), major
  • Category 5 137 knots (157 mph) or more, major
  • Unknown intensity No wind speed in the record
  • Post-tropical Storm has become post-tropical (dashed line)

How to read the lines. Each line is the track of one storm, drawn through its six-hourly positions and coloured by its intensity at each point (the Saffir-Simpson scale), so a line changes colour as the storm strengthens or weakens. Tap a line for its details, or tap anywhere else to see which storms have passed nearby. Weaker storms appear as you zoom in. Hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones are the same kind of storm with different names in different oceans.

Storms near Cayman Islands

The record holds 72 tropical cyclones whose tracks passed within 50 km of the Cayman Islands between 1853 and 2024. The busiest month is September, with 21 of them. The strongest, measured where each came closest to the place, reached category 5 strength. 7 of the storms have no wind speed in the record.

  • 72storms within 50 km
  • 11major (category 3 to 5) near here
  • 34at category 1 strength or more

A storm counts once, however many times it came close. The category is the storm's strongest point within 50 km, which can be weaker than its peak elsewhere.

How strong were the storms near Cayman Islands?

Category near hereStormsShare
Tropical depression710%
Tropical storm2433%
Category 11521%
Category 2811%
Category 357%
Category 457%
Category 511%
Unknown intensity710%

The agency behind most of the intensity figures here is the NOAA National Hurricane Center (HURDAT2, Atlantic).

Cayman Islands storms over time

Storms by decade
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 10 in 1890s.1850s1870s1890s1910s1930s1950s1970s2000s

The 2020s only run to 2024, so that bar is for a shorter period. This place's record starts in 1853, and records before the satellite era (about the 1960s) are far less complete.

Show the numbers
PeriodCount
1850s2
1860s1
1870s3
1880s3
1890s10
1900s6
1910s7
1920s2
1930s7
1940s5
1950s3
1960s1
1970s5
1980s6
2000s7
2020s4

Earlier decades hold fewer storms partly because they were harder to see. Before weather satellites (about the 1960s) many storms that stayed at sea went unrecorded, so compare decades with care.

Storms by month
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 21 in Sep.Jan0Feb0Mar0Apr0May2Jun3Jul1Aug17Sep21Oct21Nov7Dec0
Show the numbers
PeriodCount
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr0
May2
Jun3
Jul1
Aug17
Sep21
Oct21
Nov7
Dec0

Strongest storms near Cayman Islands

  • Gilbert (1988)8 September 1988 to 20 September 1988, peak Category 5 (160 kt), 888 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of October 1932 (North Atlantic)30 October 1932 to 14 November 1932, Category 4 (135 kt) near here, peak Category 5 (150 kt), 918 hPa
  • Allen (1980)31 July 1980 to 11 August 1980, Category 4 (135 kt) near here, peak Category 5 (165 kt), 899 hPa
  • Ivan (2004)2 September 2004 to 24 September 2004, Category 4 (135 kt) near here, peak Category 5 (145 kt), 910 hPa
  • Paloma (2008)5 November 2008 to 14 November 2008, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 944 hPa
  • Fox (1952)20 October 1952 to 28 October 1952, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 934 hPa

Most recent storms near Cayman Islands

  • Rafael (2024)3 November 2024 to 10 November 2024, Category 1 (80 kt) near here, peak Category 3 (105 kt), 954 hPa
  • Ida (2021)26 August 2021 to 4 September 2021, Tropical storm (55 kt) near here, peak Category 4 (130 kt), 929 hPa
  • Grace (2021)13 August 2021 to 21 August 2021, Category 1 (70 kt) near here, peak Category 3 (105 kt), 967 hPa
  • Eta (2020)31 October 2020 to 14 November 2020, Tropical storm (55 kt) near here, peak Category 4 (130 kt), 922 hPa
  • Paloma (2008)5 November 2008 to 14 November 2008, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 944 hPa

Many of these storms killed people and destroyed homes. The figures are the official record's, and this page says nothing about their human cost.

Notable storms near Cayman Islands with their own pages

  • Gilbert (1988)8 September 1988 to 20 September 1988, peak Category 5 (160 kt), 888 hPa
  • Allen (1980)31 July 1980 to 11 August 1980, peak Category 5 (165 kt), 899 hPa
  • Ivan (2004)2 September 2004 to 24 September 2004, peak Category 5 (145 kt), 910 hPa
  • Paloma (2008)5 November 2008 to 14 November 2008, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 944 hPa
  • Fox (1952)20 October 1952 to 28 October 1952, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 934 hPa
  • Charley (2004)9 August 2004 to 15 August 2004, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 947 hPa
  • Gustav (2008)25 August 2008 to 5 September 2008, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 943 hPa
  • Rafael (2024)3 November 2024 to 10 November 2024, peak Category 3 (105 kt), 954 hPa
  • Hilda (1955)12 September 1955 to 20 September 1955, peak Category 3 (105 kt), 952 hPa
  • Lili (2002)21 September 2002 to 4 October 2002, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 940 hPa
  • Grace (2021)13 August 2021 to 21 August 2021, peak Category 3 (105 kt), 967 hPa
  • Isidore (2002)14 September 2002 to 27 September 2002, peak Category 3 (110 kt), 934 hPa

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