Hurricane Flossy originated from a tropical disturbance in the eastern

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

and moved across

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

into the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...

as a tropical depression on September 21, 1956, which became a tropical storm on September 22 and a hurricane on September 23. The hurricane peaked with

maximum sustained wind The maximum sustained wind associated with a tropical cyclone is a common indicator of the intensity of the storm. Within a mature tropical cyclone, it is found within the eyewall at a certain distance from the center, known as the radius of ma ...

s of before it struck the central Gulf coast of the United States as a Category 1 hurricane on September 24, and evolved into an

extratropical cyclone Extratropical cyclones, sometimes called mid-latitude cyclones or wave cyclones, are low-pressure areas which, along with the anticyclones of high-pressure areas, drive the weather over much of the Earth. Extratropical cyclones are capable of p ...

on September 25. It was the first hurricane to affect oil refining in the Gulf of Mexico. The

tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its locat ...

led to flooding in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, and broke a drought across the eastern United States. The death toll was 15, and total damages reached $24.8 million (1956

USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introduced the U.S. dollar at par with the Spanish silver dollar, divided it int ...

). Despite the damage throughout the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, Dixieland, or simply the South) is List of regions of the United States, census regions defined by the United States Cens ...

, the name ''Flossy'' wasn't retired.

Meteorological history

A tropical disturbance moved northward, crossing Guatemala from the eastern Pacific Ocean into the northwest Caribbean Sea between September 20 and September 21. It became a tropical cyclone soon after emerging into the Caribbean, and moved across the

Yucatán Peninsula The Yucatán Peninsula ( , ; ) is a large peninsula in southeast Mexico and adjacent portions of Belize and Guatemala. The peninsula extends towards the northeast, separating the Gulf of Mexico to the north and west of the peninsula from the C ...

as a tropical depression before becoming a tropical storm in the

on September 22 and a hurricane on September 23. It turned sharply east-northeast across the Mouth of the Mississippi river on September 24 as a minor hurricane.Canadian Hurricane Center
Storms of 1956.
Retrieved on 2007-02-01. The storm continued east-northeast and made landfall in Florida east of Pensacola. The system evolved into an extratropical cyclone soon after passing out of the Sunshine State and continued moving east to northeast hugging the Atlantic Seaboard to near the Virginia Capes before moving slowly through the shipping lanes between Canada and

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

, blocked by a high pressure system in southeast Canada.Gordon E. Dunn, Walter R. Davis, and Paul L. Moore
Hurricane Season of 1956.
Retrieved on 2007-02-02.

Preparations

By the morning of September 22, hurricane watches were posted for the upper Texas and Louisiana coasts. By the morning of September 24, hurricane warnings were in effect from

Grand Isle, Louisiana Grand Isle is a town in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, Jefferson Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana, located on a barrier island of the same name in the Gulf of Mexico. The island is at the mouth of Barataria Bay where it meets the Gulf. The tow ...

Fort Walton Beach, Florida Fort Walton Beach, often referred to by the initialism FWB, is a city in southern Okaloosa County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the population was 20,922, up from 19,507 in 2010. It is a principa ...

while storm warnings were in effect from

Morgan City, Louisiana Morgan City is a small city in St. Mary Parish, Louisiana, United States, located in the Acadiana region. The population was 11,472 at the 2020 census. Known for being "right in the middle of everywhere", Morgan City is located southeast of ...

to St. Marks, Florida. The approach of the hurricane led to the evacuation of 15 aircraft from Florida to

Ardmore Air Force Base Ardmore Army Air Field, later Ardmore Air Force base was an installation of the United States Army and later Air Force. It was named after the nearby city of Ardmore, Oklahoma but was actually located closer to the town of Gene Autry, Oklahoma. It ...

, in

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

Impact

Gulf of Mexico

This was the first hurricane to cause significant disruption to oil refining in the Gulf of Mexico. Several hundred active wells went out of service, and drilling came to a halt for a few days during and after the cyclone's passage. One of Humble company's tenders saw three-quarters of its mooring chains compromised, which swung it around into an adjacent oil platform, causing $200,000 in damage (1956 USD). The cost to downtime in production was greater than the damage Flossy created to the oil rigs.Benfield Corporate Risk
A 65 Year history of hurricanes and some of their resultant impacts on the offshore industry.
Retrieved on 2007-02-01. There was no loss of life. Due to the impact of Flossy on oil refining in the Gulf of Mexico, the

American Petroleum Institute The American Petroleum Institute (API) is the largest U.S. trade association for the oil and natural gas industry. It claims to represent nearly 600 corporations involved in extraction of petroleum, production, oil refinery, refinement, pipeline ...

formed a committee called Fundamental Research on Weather Forecasting. Their goal was to use mathematical models and historic data to better predict hurricane formation and path. Studies went on into 1962, but no reliable forecast mechanism was found.

United States

In Louisiana, wind-blown sand from the beach spread over area highways due to the hurricane.D. A. Richter and E. A. DiLoreto
The Transformation of Hurricane Flossy into an Extratropical Cyclone, September 25–29, 1956.
Retrieved on 2008-02-03. A total of of rainfall fell at Golden Meadow,

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

. Burrwood, Louisiana's pressure fell to 29.03 inHg (983.1 hPa or mb). Hundreds lost their homes in the storm. The storm surge was significant enough to submerge

. At Ostrica Lock, the storm tide reached . Extensive

coastal erosion Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of Wind wave, waves, Ocean current, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts ...

was caused by the cyclone across the Mississippi Delta. In New Orleans, Louisiana, about were flooded as portions of the seawall were overtopped. Cattle drowned across the region, and crops such as citrus, sugar cane, and pecan were heavily damaged. Winds as high as struck coastal

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

. A total of of rain fell at Gulf Shores. In

Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama. Named for Continental Army major general Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River on the Gulf Coastal Plain. The population was 2 ...

, the tent used to house the Eastern Hills Baptist Church was destroyed. Across northern Florida, southern Alabama, and

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, Flossy was considered drought-breaking. In southwest Georgia, high winds from Flossy damaged the corn and cotton crops. The lowest pressure reported was or mb at Pensacola Naval Air Station. The storm tide at Laguna Beach, Florida, reached above mean

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an mean, average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal Body of water, bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical ...

. As tides damaged some piers and small craft, and resulted in severe

beach erosion Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of waves, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts of storms. The landward r ...

. At least three

tornadoes A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with the surface of Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, although the ...

touched down throughout northern Florida in association with Flossy. One damaged or destroyed numerous structures in Gulf County; two others in Jefferson and Suwannee counties caused little or no damage.Barnes, pp. 195 Further northeast, rains brought by Flossy helped relieve drought conditions across the Carolinas, and were considered beneficial. Winds as high as were recorded in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

In Virginia, the gas screw vessel Mary Anne was lost at

Naval Station Norfolk Naval Station Norfolk is a United States Navy base in Norfolk, Virginia, that is the headquarters and home port of the U.S. Navy's Fleet Forces Command. The installation occupies about of waterfront space and of pier and wharf space of the Ham ...

. High tides caused by the then-extratropical cyclone led to water deep in sections of

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

. The Back River Light collapsed during the storm, 127 years after it was built. This occurred despite of broken rock placed around its base to protect it from the surf. Severe flooding occurred along the state's coastline, including interior bays.The City of Lewes, Delaware
LEWES FLOOD FACTS AND THE NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM.
Retrieved on 2007-02-02. Total damages to Louisiana, Florida, Alabama, the Carolinas, and

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

was $24.8 million (1956 USD).

Meteorological history

Preparations

Impact

Gulf of Mexico

United States

See also

References

Further reading