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Tropical Storm Gilda in 1973 was the first documented
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 ...
on record to transition into a
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 ...
. It formed on October 16 in the western Caribbean Sea from a
tropical wave A tropical wave (also called easterly wave, tropical easterly wave, and African easterly wave), in and around the Atlantic Ocean, is a type of atmospheric trough, an elongated area of relatively low air pressure, oriented north to south, which ...
, and strengthened to reach peak winds of 70 mph (110 km/h) before striking Cuba. It later moved slowly through the Bahamas before weakening to tropical depression status. On October 24, with the assistance of a cold front off the coast of the eastern United States, Gilda transformed into a subtropical storm, becoming very large and strong. The storm later accelerated northeastward and became
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 ...
, ultimately dissipating near Greenland. The storm first brought heavy rainfall to Jamaica, causing six deaths and some damage from mudslides. While crossing Cuba and later the Bahamas, the storm caused little impact, limited to some crop damage. As a subtropical storm, Gilda brought gusty winds and high waves to much of the east coast of the United States, causing minor
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 ...
and coastal property damage.


Storm history

A
tropical wave A tropical wave (also called easterly wave, tropical easterly wave, and African easterly wave), in and around the Atlantic Ocean, is a type of atmospheric trough, an elongated area of relatively low air pressure, oriented north to south, which ...
moved off the west coast of Africa on October 3. It tracked westward, reaching the Caribbean Sea on October 10. By October 13, a large 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 ...
persisted from Hispaniola southwestward through Panama, and over the next few days the convection organized and concentrated in the northwestern Caribbean Sea. 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 ...
became established near Jamaica on October 15, which created a favorable upper-level environment for the system by reducing
wind shear Wind shear (; also written windshear), sometimes referred to as wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and/or direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere. Atmospheric wind shear is normally described as either vertical ...
. Around the same time, a low-level
trough Trough may refer to: In science * Trough (geology), a long depression less steep than a trench * Trough (meteorology), an elongated region of low atmospheric pressure * Trough (physics), the lowest point on a wave * Trough level (medicine), the l ...
emerged from the
Intertropical Convergence Zone The Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ , or ICZ), known by sailors as the doldrums or the calms because of its monotonous windless weather, is the area where the northeast and the southeast trade winds converge. It encircles Earth near the t ...
, heading north off the coast of Nicaragua. Early on October 16, the system developed into a broad tropical depression about halfway between Central America and Jamaica. The initial motion of the depression was uncertain, as steering currents could have resulted in a motion either to the west or to the north-northeast. With the possibility of the western track, the storm was remarked as being the first serious hurricane threat for southern Florida since Hurricane Gladys in 1968. However, after formation the depression moved slowly north-northeastward. The thunderstorm activity gradually became better organized while
rainbands A rainband is a cloud and precipitation structure associated with an area of rainfall which is significantly elongated. Rainbands in tropical cyclones can be either stratiform or convective and are curved in shape. They consist of showers and ...
increased around the circulation. By 0000 
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 ...
on October 18, the depression attained tropical storm status about 100 mi (160 km) northwest of the Cayman Islands, after which it was named Gilda by 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 ...
(NHC). The storm quickly strengthened as it moved toward southern Cuba, reaching peak winds of 70 mph (110 km/h) about 18 hours after reaching tropical storm status. Shortly thereafter, Gilda 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 the border of the present day Cuban provinces of
Sancti Spíritus Sancti Spíritus () is a municipality and capital city of the province of Sancti Spíritus in central Cuba and one of the oldest Cuban European settlements. Sancti Spíritus is the genitive case of Latin ''Sanctus Spiritus'' ("Holy Spirit"). ...
and
Ciego de Ávila Ciego de Ávila () is a city in the central part of Cuba and the capital of Ciego de Ávila Province. The capital city has a population of about 156,322 and the province 430,507. Geography Ciego de Ávila lies on the Carretera Central highway a ...
. Tropical Storm Gilda weakened slightly over Cuba, crossing the island in less than twelve hours before emerging into the Atlantic Ocean early on October 19. At the time, the anticyclone over Jamaica which previously assisted the cyclone instead remained over the Caribbean, which increased shear over the storm. This caused the convection to gradually separate from the low-level circulation. Early on October 20, Gilda passed just southeast of
Andros Island Andros is an archipelago in The Bahamas, the largest of the Bahamian Islands. Politically considered a single island, Andros in total has an area greater than all the other 700 Bahamian islands combined. The land area of Andros consists of hun ...
in the Bahamas, around the same time that the
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 ...
recorded an
atmospheric 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. ...
of 994 
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 ...
; this was the lowest recorded pressure in association with Gilda while it was a tropical cyclone. It gradually weakened due to the wind shear, resulting in the low-level steering currents becoming dominant. After moving through the
Exuma Exuma is a district of the Bahamas, district of The Bahamas, consisting of over 365 islands and Cay, cays. The largest of the islands is Great Exuma, which is 37 mi (60 km) in length and joined to another island, Little Exuma, by a small bridge ...
island chain, the storm passed near or over
Eleuthera Eleuthera () refers both to a single island in the archipelagic state of the The Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Bahamas and to its associated group of smaller islands. Eleuthera forms a part of the Great Bahama Bank. The island of Eleuthera incor ...
, and late on October 21 Gilda became nearly stationary about 60 mi (95 km/h) east of Harbour Island. Late on October 22, after moving only about 6 mi (10 km) in a 24‑hour period, Gilda weakened to a tropical depression. Now a tropical depression, Gilda remained nearly stationary for another 24 hours before accelerating northeastward, under the influence of an upper-level trough exiting the east coast of the United States. Cold air from the trough interacted with Gilda, providing a
baroclinic In fluid dynamics, the baroclinity (often called baroclinicity) of a stratified fluid is a measure of how misaligned the gradient of pressure is from the gradient of density in a fluid. In meteorology, a baroclinic flow is one in which the dens ...
environment for intensifying, and on October 24 the storm transitioned into a
subtropical storm A subtropical cyclone is a weather system that has some characteristics of both tropical and extratropical cyclones. As early as the 1950s, meteorologists were uncertain whether they should be characterized as tropical or extratropical cyclones ...
about halfway between Hispaniola and North Carolina. This made Gilda the first tropical storm on record to transition into a subtropical cyclone. Operationally, tropical storm advisories were still issued on Gilda while it was subtropical, due to the need to maintain consistency and the possibility it could again become tropical. The circulation of the storm became very large, at one point stretching from New England to the Bahamas, and eastward beyond Bermuda, or a diameter of more than 1300 mi (2100 km). On October 25, Gilda passed about halfway between Bermuda and
Cape Hatteras Cape Hatteras is a cape located at a pronounced bend in Hatteras Island, one of the barrier islands of North Carolina. As a temperate barrier island, the landscape has been shaped by wind, waves, and storms. There are long stretches of beach ...
, when it reached peak winds of 70 mph (110 km/h). Subsequently, it turned northeastward, and on October 27 attained a minimum pressure of 984 mbar, the lowest of its duration while tropical or subtropical. Later that day, Gilda became 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 ...
southeast of the Canadian Maritimes as it moved over colder waters. After passing just southeast of Newfoundland, the storm continued northeastward, becoming nearly stationary off the coast of Greenland before dissipating on October 30.


Preparations, impact, and records

Tropical Storm Gilda first affected Jamaica, bringing heavy rainfall in a three-day period. The highest amount measured in a 24‑hour period within Jamaica was , which triggered many landslides across eastern sections of the island. The rains produced landslides, particularly in Saint Andrew Parish where six houses were destroyed. Elsewhere on the island, the mudslides caused further property damage and left some roads unpassable. Six people were killed throughout the country. The storm did not have significant impact in Cuba. A station in the mountains of what was then known as
Oriente Province Oriente (, "East") was the easternmost province of Cuba until 1976. The term "Oriente" is still used to refer to the eastern part of the country, which currently is divided into five different provinces. The origins of Oriente lie in the 1607 di ...
recorded winds of 60 mph (95 km/h). The city of Morón, located along the northern coast of Cuba, recorded 6.13 inches (155 mm) of rainfall in the 6 hour period prior to the storm passing the area. Damage was minor, limited to some crop damage in the eastern portion of the island, as well as power outages. The threat of the storm forced several thousand people to leave their homes. In the Bahamas, officials closed schools, and many businesses closed early on the day the storm moved through the country. The storm's stationary motion caused several days of high tides and heavy rains. Tropical storm force wind gusts were reported on Andros Island, and gusts peaked at 75 mph (120 km/h) on Golden Cay. Gilda's passage left crop damage on several islands, although monetary losses in the country were minor. When Gilda was forecast to move near southeastern Florida,
gale warning A ''gale warning'' is an alert issued by national weather forecasting agencies around the world in an event that maritime locations currently or imminently experiencing winds of gale force on the Beaufort scale. Gale warnings (and gale watch ...
s were issued from North Key Largo to
Fort Lauderdale Fort Lauderdale ( ) is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and most populous city in Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the 2020 census, making it ...
. Rough seas affected the Florida coastline for about 72 hours, causing moderate coastal property damage and beach erosion. After becoming a large subtropical cyclone, gale warnings were issued at various times from
Cape Hatteras Cape Hatteras is a cape located at a pronounced bend in Hatteras Island, one of the barrier islands of North Carolina. As a temperate barrier island, the landscape has been shaped by wind, waves, and storms. There are long stretches of beach ...
, North Carolina to the mouth of the
Merrimack River The Merrimack River (or Merrimac River, an occasional earlier spelling) is a river in the northeastern United States. It rises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire, flows southward into M ...
in Massachusetts. High surf and minor beach erosion were reported along the coastline, and gale-force winds were observed from North Carolina to New Jersey. Over the western Atlantic Ocean, the storm produced strong winds and rough seas. One ship reported a wave height of 28 ft (8.5 m), though no significant marine losses were reported. Around the time of it becoming extratropical,
Sable Island Sable Island (, literally "island of sand") is a small, remote island off the coast of Nova Scotia, Canada. Sable Island is located in the North Atlantic Ocean, about southeast of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Halifax, and about southeast of the clo ...
off the coast of Nova Scotia recorded a wind gust of 74 mph (119 km/h). Tropical Storm Gilda was notable as being the first observed tropical cyclone to transition into a subtropical cyclone; several subtropical cyclones have undergone
tropical cyclogenesis Tropical cyclogenesis is the development and strengthening of a tropical cyclone in the atmosphere. The mechanisms through which tropics, tropical cyclogenesis occur are distinctly different from those through which temperate cyclogenesis occu ...
, but never the opposite. Since Gilda, a few other storms accomplished the feat. In 1980, a tropical depression dissipated, reformed as a subtropical depression, and later became
Hurricane Georges Hurricane Georges () was a powerful and long-lived tropical cyclone which caused severe destruction as it traversed the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico in September 1998, making seven landfalls along its path. Georges was the seventh tropical storm ...
over the open Atlantic Ocean. The next year, Tropical Storm Jose became subtropical near the end of its duration, and in 1984, Hurricane Klaus became a subtropical storm over the western Atlantic Ocean. In 2001, Tropical Storm Allison, after causing devastating flooding in Texas, became a subtropical storm over the Gulf of Mexico and moved across much of the southeastern United States. In 2011, Tropical Storm Lee transitioned into a subtropical storm while approaching Louisiana.


See also

* Other tropical cyclones named Gilda


External links

{{Good article Gilda Gilda (1973) Gilda (1973) Gilda (1973) Gilda (1973) Gilda (1973)