Hurricane Floyd was the only hurricane to make

landfall Landfall is the event of a storm moving over land after being over water. More broadly, and in relation to human travel, it refers to 'the first land that is reached or seen at the end of a journey across the sea or through the air, or the fact ...

in the United States in the

1987 Atlantic hurricane season The 1987 Atlantic hurricane season was a below-average Atlantic hurricane season, hurricane season that was limited by an ongoing El Niño. The season officially began on June 1, 1987, and lasted until November 30, 1987, although acti ...

. The final of seven tropical storms and three hurricanes, Floyd developed on October 9 just off the east coast of

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

. After becoming a tropical storm, it moved northward and crossed western

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

. An approaching

cold front A cold front is the leading edge of a cooler mass of air at ground level that replaces a warmer mass of air and lies within a pronounced surface Trough (meteorology), trough of Low-pressure area, low pressure. It often forms behind an extratropica ...

caused Floyd to turn unexpectedly to the northeast, and late on October 12 it attained hurricane status near the

Florida Keys The Florida Keys are a coral island, coral cay archipelago off the southern coast of Florida, forming the southernmost part of the continental United States. They begin at the southeastern coast of the Florida peninsula, about south of Miami a ...

. It moved through southern Florida, spawning two tornadoes and leaving minor damage. The hurricane also produced rip tides that killed a person in southern Texas. Floyd maintained hurricane status for only 12 hours before the cold front imparted hostile conditions and caused weakening. It passed through the

Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of its population. ...

before becoming

extratropical 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 ...

and later dissipating on October 14.

Meteorological history

The origins of Hurricane Floyd were from a

low pressure area In meteorology, a low-pressure area (LPA), low area or low is a region where the atmospheric pressure is lower than that of surrounding locations. It is the opposite of a high-pressure area. Low-pressure areas are commonly associated with inclem ...

in the

Gulf of Honduras The Gulf of Honduras or the Bay of Honduras is a large inlet of the Caribbean Sea, indenting the coasts of Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras. From north to south, it runs for approximately 200 km (125 miles) from Dangriga, Belize, to La Cei ...

on October 5. Over the subsequent few days, it drifted eastward and later southward to a position off the east coast of

. On October 9, a

Hurricane Hunters Hurricane hunters, typhoon hunters, or cyclone hunters are aircrews that fly into tropical cyclones to gather weather data. In the United States, the organizations that fly these missions are the United States Air Force Reserve's 53rd Weather ...

flight confirmed the development of an organized circulation, which indicated that Tropical Depression Thirteen had developed. After continuing a southward drift, the depression turned to the north and later northwest due to a building

ridge A ridge is a long, narrow, elevated geomorphologic landform, structural feature, or a combination of both separated from the surrounding terrain by steep sides. The sides of a ridge slope away from a narrow top, the crest or ridgecrest, wi ...

to its east. With an

anticyclone A high-pressure area, high, or anticyclone, is an area near the surface of a planet where the atmospheric pressure is greater than the pressure in the surrounding regions. Highs are middle-scale meteorological features that result from interpl ...

aloft, the depression gradually organized, intensifying into Tropical Storm Floyd on October 10. After reaching tropical storm status, Floyd accelerated to the north in the western Caribbean Sea, due to an approaching

. Steadily intensifying, the storm moved over extreme western Cuba early on October 12. Initially it was forecast to make landfall between

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

and

Fort Myers, Florida Fort Myers (or Ft. Myers) is a city in and the county seat of Lee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 86,395; it was estimated to have grown to 95,949 in 2022, making it the List o ...

. Unexpectedly the storm turned sharply northeastward into the southeastern Gulf of Mexico. Based on reports from the Hurricane Hunters, Floyd briefly attained hurricane status on October 12. Around the same time, the nearby cold front spawned a low pressure area that cut off the hurricane's

inflow Inflow may refer to: * Inflow (hydrology), the water entering a body of water * Inflow (meteorology) Inflow is the flow of a fluid into a large collection of that fluid. Within meteorology, inflow normally refers to the influx of warmth and mo ...

. While moving through the

, Floyd became the only hurricane to affect the United States that year. However, its convection was rapidly decreasing over the center due to the front, and shortly thereafter Floyd weakened to tropical storm status. The circulation became nearly impossible to track on satellite imagery, although surface observations indicated it passed just south of

Miami, Florida Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

. The storm underwent

transition as it weakened over the

, and Floyd was no longer a tropical cyclone by late on October 18. The circulation dissipated within the cold front early the next day.

Preparations and impact

Around when Floyd first attained tropical storm status, a

tropical storm warning Tropical cyclone warnings and watches are alerts issued by national weather forecasting bodies to coastal areas threatened by the imminent approach of a tropical cyclone of tropical storm or hurricane intensity. They are notices to the local pop ...

was issued for the Swan Islands as well as

Grand Cayman Grand Cayman is the largest of the three Cayman Islands and the location of the territory's capital, George Town, Cayman Islands, George Town. In relation to the other two Cayman Islands, it is approximately 75 miles (121 km) southwest of L ...

. Shortly thereafter, a tropical storm warning and hurricane watch was issued for the northeast

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 ...

before the storm dropped heavy rainfall along the coast. A tropical storm warning and hurricane watch were also issued for Cuba west of

Havana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. In preparation for the storm, Cuban officials in

Pinar del Río Province The Pinar del Río Province is one of the 15 provinces of Cuba. It is at the western end of the island of Cuba. The capital and largest city is Pinar del Río (191,081 pop. in 2022). Geography The Pinar del Río province is Cuba's westernmost p ...

evacuated 100,000 people, as well as 40,000 head of cattle. In addition, international flights were canceled for a day during Floyd's passage. Despite passing over western Cuba as a tropical storm, Floyd left no serious damage or fatalities in the country. When Floyd was a tropical storm located over Cuba, the National Hurricane Center issued a hurricane warning for the Florida Keys as well as the southwest Florida coast to

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

. It was the first warning in the state related to the storm, and was issued due to the anticipated intensification to hurricane status as well as short notice. A tropical storm watch, and later warning, was issued for eastern Florida. After the track became more easterly, a hurricane warning was issued for southeastern Florida, as well as the northwestern Bahamas. Officials in southern Florida closed schools due to the storm, and a few flights were canceled at

Miami International Airport Miami International Airport , also known as MIA and historically as Wilcox Field, is the primary international airport serving Miami and its Miami metropolitan area, surrounding metropolitan area, in the U.S. state of Florida. It hosts over 1, ...

. Roughly 100 F-4 and F16 fighter jets were transported out of

Homestead Air Force Base Homestead Air Reserve Base (Homestead ARB), previously known as Homestead Air Force Base (Homestead AFB) is located in Miami–Dade County, Florida, to the northeast of the city of Homestead. It is home to the 482nd Fighter Wing (482 FW) o ...

to safer facilities. The

American Red Cross The American National Red Cross is a Nonprofit organization, nonprofit Humanitarianism, humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. Clara Barton founded ...

opened 55 shelters in 10 Florida counties, housing about 2,000 people at some point, primarily in Lee County. People in the hurricane's path prepared by purchasing supplies from supermarkets, gassing up their vehicles, and securing loose outside items. Floyd was the first named storm to strike southern Florida since

Hurricane Bob Hurricane Bob was one of the costliest tropical cyclones in New England history. The second named storm and first hurricane of the 1991 Atlantic hurricane season, Bob developed from an area of low pressure near The Bahamas on August 16. The ...

in 1985. While passing south of Florida, Floyd produced its strongest winds over water away and from land. The strongest wind in the Florida Keys was 59 mph (94 km/h) at Duck Key, although wind gusts were stronger. The

Air Force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

station on Cudjoe Key reported an unofficial gust of 92 mph (152 km/h). Rainfall directly from Floyd's rainbands produced minimal rainfall less than . However, the interaction between the hurricane and the approaching cold front produced much heavier rainfall. Precipitation reached as far north as

Daytona Daytona may refer to: Locations * Daytona Beach, Florida * Daytona Beach Shores, Florida * South Daytona, Florida * The Daytona Beach metropolitan area * Halifax area, also known as Daytona, the region around Daytona Beach Motor racing * Dayto ...

, peaking at in

Fort Pierce Fort Pierce is a city in and the county seat of St. Lucie County, Florida, United States. The city is part of the Treasure Coast region of Florida’s Atlantic Coast. It is also known as the Sunrise City. Per the 2020 United States census, 2020 ...

. While bypassing the Florida Keys, Floyd spawned a waterspout that moved ashore in Rock Harbor. It damaged a few boats and homes. The hurricane produced rip tides as far west as the Texas coast, killing one person along

South Padre Island South Padre Island is a barrier island in the U.S. state of Texas. The remote landform is located in Cameron County, Willacy County, and accessible by the Queen Isabella Causeway. South Padre Island was formed when the creation of the Port Ma ...

. Across southern Florida, the hurricane left minor damage of around $500,000 (1987 USD), largely due to downed trees and power lines, as well as minor crop damage in Dade County. The rainfall flooded roads in southern Florida, which caused several vehicles to fail on the

Florida Turnpike Florida's Turnpike, designated as unsigned State Road 91 (SR 91), is a controlled-access toll road in the U.S. state of Florida, maintained by Florida's Turnpike Enterprise (FTE). Spanning approximately along a northwest–southeast axis, the ...

. After affecting Florida, Floyd caused minor wind damage in the Bahamas. In the country, the highest reported gust was at Freeport, Grand Bahama. Freeport International Airport reported sustained winds of from the remnants of Floyd. On October 15, British weather forecaster

Michael Fish Michael Fish (born 27 April 1944) is a British weather forecasting, weather forecaster. From 1974 to 2004, he was a television presenter for BBC Weather. Career Fish was born on 27 April 1944 in Eastbourne, Sussex. Educated at Osmington Sch ...

stated on the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

, "Earlier on today, apparently, a woman rang the BBC and said she heard there was a hurricane on the way; well, if you're watching, don't worry, there isn't, but having said that, actually, the weather will become very windy, but most of the strong winds, incidentally, will be down over Spain and across into France." That same day, a weather system developing over the

Bay of Biscay The Bay of Biscay ( ) is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Point Penmarc'h to the Spanish border, and along the northern coast of Spain, extending westward ...

(unrelated to Floyd or its remnants) struck

South East England South East England is one of the nine official regions of England, regions of England that are in the ITL 1 statistical regions of England, top level category for Statistics, statistical purposes. It consists of the nine counties of england, ...

as one of the worst storms in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

in three centuries. Though technically not a hurricane, the United Kingdom experienced wind gusts up to 120 mph (195 km/h). Fish was criticized for incorrectly forecasting the storm and later claimed he was referring to Hurricane Floyd, but neglected to mention Florida.

References

{{1987 Atlantic hurricane season buttons Floyd (1987) Floyd Floyd (1987) Floyd (1987) Floyd (1987) 1987 natural disasters in the United States 1987 in Florida Floyd

Meteorological history

Preparations and impact

See also

References