Hurricanes that hit Cameron County, Texas: hurricane history

39 storms have passed within 50 km of Cameron County from 1854 to 2021, coloured by intensity on the map.

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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 Cameron County

The record holds 39 tropical cyclones whose tracks passed within 50 km of Cameron County, Texas between 1854 and 2021. The busiest month is September, with 14 of them. The strongest, measured where each came closest to the place, reached category 4 strength. 3 of the storms have no wind speed in the record.

  • 39storms within 50 km
  • 6major (category 3 to 5) near here
  • 18at 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 Cameron County?

Category near hereStormsShare
Tropical depression410%
Tropical storm1436%
Category 1615%
Category 2615%
Category 313%
Category 4513%
Category 500%
Unknown intensity38%

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

Cameron County storms over time

Storms by decade
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 4 in 1910s.1850s1870s1890s1910s1930s1950s1970s1990s2010s

The 2020s only run to 2021, so that bar is for a shorter period. This place's record starts in 1854, and records before the satellite era (about the 1960s) are far less complete.

Show the numbers
PeriodCount
1850s3
1860s1
1870s2
1880s3
1890s1
1900s3
1910s4
1920s1
1930s4
1940s1
1950s2
1960s2
1970s2
1980s3
1990s2
2000s1
2010s2
2020s2

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 14 in Sep.Jan0Feb0Mar0Apr0May0Jun9Jul5Aug9Sep14Oct2Nov0Dec0
Show the numbers
PeriodCount
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr0
May0
Jun9
Jul5
Aug9
Sep14
Oct2
Nov0
Dec0

Strongest storms near Cameron County

  • Unnamed storm of August 1880 (North Atlantic)4 August 1880 to 14 August 1880, peak Category 4 (130 kt), 931 hPa
  • Beulah (1967)5 September 1967 to 24 September 1967, Category 4 (125 kt) near here, peak Category 5 (140 kt), 923 hPa
  • Allen (1980)31 July 1980 to 11 August 1980, Category 4 (125 kt) near here, peak Category 5 (165 kt), 899 hPa
  • Bret (1999)18 August 1999 to 25 August 1999, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 944 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of August 1916 (North Atlantic)12 August 1916 to 20 August 1916, peak Category 4 (115 kt), 932 hPa

Most recent storms near Cameron County

  • Nicholas (2021)12 September 2021 to 17 September 2021, Tropical storm (55 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (65 kt), 988 hPa
  • Hanna (2020)23 July 2020 to 26 July 2020, peak Category 1 (80 kt), 973 hPa
  • Hermine (2010)3 September 2010 to 10 September 2010, peak Tropical storm (55 kt), 990 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.

A storm that came near several counties counts in each one, so county counts add up to more than the state's.

Notable storms near Cameron County

  • Allen (1980)31 July 1980 to 11 August 1980, peak Category 5 (165 kt), 899 hPa
  • Beulah (1967)5 September 1967 to 24 September 1967, peak Category 5 (140 kt), 923 hPa
  • Bret (1999)18 August 1999 to 25 August 1999, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 944 hPa

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