2019 Atlantic hurricane season
The 2019 Atlantic hurricane season was the fourth consecutive season of above-average and damaging seasons dating back to 2016. This hurricane season has 20 tropical cyclones and 18 named storms in total in which tropical cyclones were formed in the Northern Hemisphere at the Atlantic basin. The season officially began on June 1, 2019, and ended on November 30, 2019.
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| Season summary map | |
| First storm formed | May 20, 2019 |
|---|---|
| Last storm dissipated | November 25, 2019 |
| Strongest storm | Dorian – 910 mbar (hPa) (26.88 inHg), 185 mph (295 km/h) (1-minute sustained) |
| Total depressions | 20 |
| Total storms | 18 |
| Hurricanes | 6 |
| Major hurricanes (Cat. 3+) | 3 |
| Total fatalities | 98 total (86 direct, 12 indirect) |
| Total damage | > $11.611 billion (2019 USD) |
| Atlantic hurricane seasons 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 | |
| Related article | |
Subtropical Storm Andrea formed on May 20, making 2019 the fifth consecutive season in which storms formed before the official start of the hurricane season; this breaks the record of four consecutive years set in 1951-1954. Barry became the first hurricane of the season in early July. Hurricane Dorian became a first major hurricane of the season in late August, and later became a Category 5 hurricane on September 1, making 2019 the fourth consecutive season to feature at least one Category 5 hurricane (Matthew in 2016; Irma and Maria in 2017; Michael in 2018). Tropical Storm Imelda formed on September 17 and caused catastrophic flooding over Southeast Texas, making Imelda one of the wettest tropical cyclones in U.S. history. Hurricane Lorenzo became a second Category 5 hurricane of the season on September 29, making 2019 one of the Atlantic hurricane seasons to feature more than one Category 5 hurricane; and also, this made Lorenzo the easternmost Category 5 hurricane on record, surpassing Hurricane Hugo in 1989. The season ended with Tropical Storm Sebastian on November 25.
Storms change
For a record fifth consecutive year, activity began before the official start of the season when Subtropical Storm Andrea formed on May 20. No storms formed in the month of June, but activity resumed in July when Hurricane Barry formed. Tropical Depression Three formed soon afterwards. After the dissipation of Three less than 24 hours later, the activity again suppressed. However, nearly a month later, on August 21, Tropical Storm Chantal formed, making the 2019 hurricane season the second latest starting season of the 21st century. Early on August 24, Chantal dissipated. Later that day, Dorian formed. On August 26, a tropical depression formed off the coast of North Carolina Carolina.