Subtropical Storm One was a short-lived

subtropical cyclone A subtropical cyclone is a weather system that has some characteristics of both tropical cyclone, tropical and extratropical cyclones. As early as the 1950s, meteorologists were uncertain whether they should be characterized as Tropical cyclone ...

that brought copious amounts of rainfall to central

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

in late June 1974. The storm originated in an area of

convection Convection is single or Multiphase flow, multiphase fluid flow that occurs Spontaneous process, spontaneously through the combined effects of material property heterogeneity and body forces on a fluid, most commonly density and gravity (see buoy ...

that detached from a tropical depression over the southwestern Gulf of Mexico on June 24. A new

area of low pressure 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 ...

developed underneath the convection and the system began to intensify. Later that day, the storm had become sufficiently organized to be classified as a subtropical depression. Early on June 25, it made landfall near

Clearwater, Florida Clearwater is a city and the county seat of Pinellas County, Florida, United States, west of Tampa, Florida, Tampa and north of St. Petersburg, Florida, St. Petersburg. To the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and to the southeast lies T ...

with winds of 50 mph (85 km/h) and later attained its peak intensity over eastern Florida with winds of 65 mph (100 km/h). After reemerging into the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

, the system began to weaken as it underwent an

extratropical transition 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 ...

. The storm ultimately dissipated off the coast of North Carolina early on June 26. Despite its relatively weak strength, the system produced nearly of rain around

Tampa, Florida Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...

, and the

National Hurricane Center The National Hurricane Center (NHC) is the division of the United States' NOAA/National Weather Service responsible for tracking and predicting tropical weather systems between the IERS Reference Meridian, Prime Meridian and the 140th meridian ...

reported upwards of nearby. Around

Lake Okeechobee Lake Okeechobee ( ) is the largest freshwater lake in the U.S. state of Florida. It is the List of largest lakes of the United States by area, eighth-largest natural freshwater lake among the 50 states of the United States and the second-largest ...

, precipitation totals of were common. The heavy rainfall led to moderate flooding across the state. One

tornado 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 ...

was confirmed to have touched down in association with the cyclone. Three people drowned as a result of the storm and damage amounted to $10 million (1974 USD, $ in 2009 USD).

Meteorological history

tropical depression 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 ...

was situated over the southwestern

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 ...

on June 22, 1974. By June 24, the depression began to weaken as it moved near the

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

coastline, causing convective activity to move away from the center of circulation. Later that day, a new

developed underneath the convection in the central Gulf of Mexico. It continued to mature, and around 1800

UTC Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) is the primary time standard globally used to regulate clocks and time. It establishes a reference for the current time, forming the basis for civil time and time zones. UTC facilitates international communica ...

, the system had become sufficiently organized to be classified as a subtropical depression. Although subtropical, the storm was operationally considered to be non-tropical, but was reassessed in a post-season analysis of the system. Upon becoming subtropical, the storm tracked rapidly towards the northeast at . Early on June 25, the depression intensified into a subtropical storm as it neared the Florida coastline.

Reconnaissance mission In military operations, military reconnaissance () or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, the terrain, and civil activities in the area of operations. In military jargon, reconnai ...

s were flown into the storm until it made

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 ...

near

with winds of 50 mph (85 km/h) during the morning of June 25. Although over land, the system continued to intensify as it moved through the Florida Peninsula. Roughly six-hours after landfall, the storm attained its peak intensity with winds of 65 mph (100 km/h) and a

barometric pressure Atmospheric pressure, also known as air pressure or barometric pressure (after the barometer), is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The standard atmosphere (symbol: atm) is a unit of pressure defined as , which is equivalent to 1,013.2 ...

of 1000

mbar The bar is a metric unit of pressure defined as 100,000 Pa (100 kPa), though not part of the International System of Units (SI). A pressure of 1 bar is slightly less than the current average atmospheric pressure on Earth at sea ...

(

hPa The pascal (symbol: Pa) is the unit of pressure in the International System of Units (SI). It is also used to quantify internal pressure, stress, Young's modulus, and ultimate tensile strength. The unit, named after Blaise Pascal, is an S ...

; 29.53

inHg Inch of mercury (inHg, ″Hg, or in) is a non- SI unit of measurement for pressure. It is used for barometric pressure in weather reports, refrigeration and aviation in the United States. It is the pressure exerted by a column of mercury in h ...

). Not long after attaining this intensity, the storm moved over the far western

and began to weaken. Later that day, it began to undergo an

, acquiring frontal features and elongated convection. The storm completed this transition within 12 hours before becoming poorly defined and dissipating off the

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

coastline early on June 26.

Preparations and impact

Following the formation of the system, the

issued small craft advisories and gale warnings for most of the Florida coastline. Although it was relatively weak, the system brought torrential rainfall to parts of central Florida, with amounts of in

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

. The National Hurricane Center reported that up to fell near

Tampa Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...

. In a 24-hour span, of rain fell in

Inverness Inverness (; ; from the , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness") is a city in the Scottish Highlands, having been granted city status in 2000. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highland ...

. Rainfall amounts exceeding covered a large area north of Tampa and totals between were common west of

. Two runways at the St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport were submerged in flood waters during the storm. Offshore, waves up to affected coastal areas. Several vessels became stranded in the storm, resulted in many

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a Maritime Security Regimes, maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with cust ...

rescues, many by towing the ships back to shore. A

was reported near

Fort Myers A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...

. Additionally, two

waterspout A waterspout is a rotating column of air that occurs over a body of water, usually appearing as a funnel-shaped cloud in contact with the water and a cumuliform cloud. There are two types of waterspout, each formed by distinct mechanisms. ...

s touched down near

Sarasota Sarasota () is a city in and the county seat of Sarasota County, Florida, United States. It is located in Southwest Florida, the southern end of the Tampa Bay area, and north of Fort Myers and Punta Gorda. Its official limits include Sarasota Ba ...

; however, both struck unpopulated areas and left no damage. One of the two waterspouts was later confirmed as an F0 tornado with a track length of roughly .

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 ...

was common along many beaches in southeastern states. The most significant erosion took place between

Cedar Key Cedar Key is a city in Levy County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 687, down from 702 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. The Cedar Keys are a cluster of ...

and

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 ...

where

coastal flooding Coastal flooding occurs when dry and low-lying land is submerged (flooded) by seawater. The range of a coastal Flood, flooding is a result of the elevation of floodwater that penetrates the inland which is controlled by the topography of the coas ...

was reported. After moving through Florida, the subtropical storm brought gusty winds and light to moderate rainfall to

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 ...

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

and

. Throughout Florida, three people were killed by the storm from drowning and floods left roughly $10 million (1974 USD, $ in 2009 USD) in damage.

References

External links

National Hurricane CenterMonthly Weather Review for 1974
{{Good article 1974 Atlantic hurricane season 01 1974 01 1974 1974 in Florida

Meteorological history

Preparations and impact

See also

References

External links