Maryland's hurricane seasons: Looking back at the severe storms in state history
Hurricanes and severe storms were still hitting Maryland before the official naming of storms in 1952, but thanks to the recordkeeping of the National Weather Service and NOAA, we are able to look back on the storms that made their mark on the state we call home.
1878: A Category 2 unnamed storm hit Baltimore and the surrounding regions causing significant damage. This was the strongest storm to ever hit this region since record-keeping began in 1851.
1933: The Chesapeake Bay Hurricane, known for its strong winds, caused a total of 18 deaths and 79 million in damages. This storm caused the highest tides ever recorded from a storm surge. In Washington D.C., the surge reached 11 feet.
1952: The first impactful named storm would be Able in 1952. A tornado struck with destructive force at Potomac. Rainfall ranged from 2 to 3 inches. Property damage in the area was estimated to be over $500,000 caused primarily by flooding and the destructive force of the tornado.
1954: Hazel, which was a storm, not a hurricane, caused winds so strong the records still hold today. There were 3 deaths in the District, 13 in Virginia and 6 in Maryland. Many other people were injured.
Over half of a million dollars in damage occurred in the District with about $40 million in damages to Maryland and Virginia. The historical database shows that this storm was already extratropical when it moved through the area as it had already merged with a front, so it cannot be considered a hurricane, but a rather strong extratropical storm.
1955: Maryland was hit by two hurricanes five days apart. First up was CONNIE. The eye of Connie moved up the Chesapeake Bay, across Baltimore and into Pennsylvania. Connie dropped as much as 9.5 inches in Prince Georges County and the storm's rainfall produced flooding in Frederick County.
The rains produced by Connie saturated the soil and set the stage for the devastating floods that followed with Hurricane Diane. 16 people lost their lives in this storm. Total damages were $4 million in Maryland.
Then came DIANE. Moving through Baltimore. the combined rains of Connie and Diane set new records for the month of August. A whopping 18.35 inches. Turning to the second half of the 20th century...
1972: AGNES came. It was known as one of the costliest natural disasters in U.S. history with $2.1 billion in damages.
1979: DAVID made its mark. Hurricane David spawned eight tornadoes across the greater Washington metro area. The strongest tornado was an F3 in Fairfax County that tracked 18 miles, killing one and injuring six. Fairfax County had $2.5 million in damages.
1985: Once a Category-4, Gloria struck land as a Category-2 storm, then paralleled the Virginia and Maryland coastlines. Rainfall amounts of over 6 inches and strong winds left nearly 200,000 people across Virginia and Maryland without power.
2003: Isabel hits. One of the most significant tropical cyclones to affect the Chesapeake Bay region since Hurricane Hazel in 1954 and the Chesapeake–Potomac Hurricane of 1933. Isabel made landfall as a strong category 2 hurricane.
This storm will be remembered for the very large field of tropical storm force winds which caused a great deal of tree damage, and extensive flash flooding At the peak of the storm, well over 2 million people were without power. Isabel was very costly.
2004: The remnants of Ivan spawned an outbreak of 117 tornadoes over a three-day period in the United States including six in Maryland. A total of 32 tornadoes occurred in the LWX forecast area. There were no fatalities, but 12 people suffered injuries.
2011: In terms of rainfall, a swath of 5-10 inches of rainfall was reported to the west of the Irene's track. Communities east of Baltimore were within that area. Between the Blue Ridge and Interstate 95, rainfall totals generally fell between 2 and 4 inches.
Locally, Irene will be remembered for producing extensive tree damage due to its strong gusty winds and for its heavy rainfall. The wind and fallen trees resulted in around 850,000 power outages in Maryland and the District of Columbia. Early damage estimates in the days following the storm topped $13 million in Northern Virginia and central and Southern Maryland.
We of course have to mention The effects of Superstorm Sandy in 2012. Although not a hurricane, the impacts were felt throughout the Northeast and the Mid-Atlantic states.
Rainfall records were broken throughout the affected area, and roughly 3 feet of snow fell in mountainous parts of western Maryland.
