Hurricane Cindy

The name Cindy has been used for eight tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean.

Hurricane Cindy (2005)

Hurricane Cindy was a tropical cyclone that briefly reached minimal hurricane strength in the Gulf of Mexico during July in the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season and made landfall in Louisiana. It was the third named storm and first hurricane of the season. Cindy was originally thought to have been a tropical storm at peak strength, but was upgraded to a Category 1 hurricane in the post-storm analysis.

Hurricane Cindy initially formed on July 3 just east of the Yucatán Peninsula in the Caribbean Sea. The depression soon made landfall on the peninsula and weakened before reemerging in the Gulf of Mexico on July 4. The storm strengthened as it moved north becoming a hurricane just before making landfall near Grand Isle, Louisiana, on July 5. The storm weakened as it moved overland and became extratropical on July 7.

Hurricane Cindy was responsible for 3 deaths in the United States and brought heavy rains to Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Maryland. An unusually strong F2 tornado was spawned from Cindy's remnants and caused severe damage in Hampton, Georgia. Cindy also caused flooding and a severe blackout in New Orleans, Louisiana, which encouraged the population to evacuate when Hurricane Katrina approached the city the next month.

Hurricane Cindy (1963)

Hurricane Cindy was the first hurricane to form in the Gulf of Mexico since 1960. The third named storm of the 1963 Atlantic hurricane season, Cindy developed within a trough as a tropical storm in the Gulf of Mexico on 16 September. The disturbance swiftly intensified to hurricane strength, with a distinct eye becoming visible on satellite imagery as it drifted north-northwestwards toward the Texas coastline. Despite favorable conditions, with high sea surface temperatures, the storm only intensified into a Category 1 hurricane. After peaking with 1-minute maximum sustained winds of 80 mph (130 km/h), it made landfall at High Island on the morning of 17 September as a slightly weaker system with an atmospheric pressure of 996 mbar (hPa; 29.41 inHg). Cindy remained nearly stationary for almost a day, dropping copious rainfall over the Texas coastal plain, before finally turning west-southwestward and dissipating west of Corpus Christi on 20 September.

Hurricane watches and warnings were issued prior to Cindy's landfall, hastening evacuations in coastal areas of Louisiana and Texas, with many refugees seeking safety in local shelters. Although tide and wind damage was minimal, extreme rainfall totaling upwards of 23.50 in (597 mm) resulted in severe flooding in many areas of the Texas coastal plain; 4,000 homes were inundated in Jefferson, Orange, and Newton counties, many of them after a levee ruptured in Port Acres. Dozens of residents were forced to flee in rising flood waters, and many streets and roadways became impassable as a result of Cindy's flooding. Strong winds shattered glass windows, and schools throughout southeastern Texas were closed due to the hurricane. Widespread crop damage was observed, with rice, cotton, and pecan harvests suffering the worst. Overall, damage amounted to $12.5 million (1963 USD), and three deaths were recorded.

1999 Atlantic hurricane season

The 1999 Atlantic hurricane season had five Category 4 hurricanes – the highest amount recorded in a single season in the Atlantic basin. The season officially began on June 1, and ended on November 30. These dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones form in the Atlantic basin. It was a fairly active season, mostly due to a persistent La Niña that developed in the latter half of 1998. The first storm, Arlene, formed on June 11 to the southeast of Bermuda. It meandered slowly for a week and caused no impact on land. Other tropical cyclones that did not affect land were Hurricane Cindy, Tropical Storm Emily, and Tropical Depression Twelve. Minor impact on land was caused by Hurricanes Bret, Gert, and Jose, Tropical Storms Harvey and Katrina, and Tropical Depression Seven.

The most significant storm of the season was Hurricane Floyd, a strong Category 4 hurricane that caused devastating flooding along the East Coast of the United States, especially in North Carolina. Damage from the storm was $4.5 billion (1999 USD) and there were at least 57 fatalities, making the deadliest hurricane in the United States since Hurricane Agnes in 1972. Flooding from Floyd in North Carolina resulted from its passage in the wake of Hurricane Dennis, a slow and erratic moving storm that dropped heavy rainfall in the eastern portion of the state. A tropical depression in October contributed to extreme flooding in Mexico, though impact directly from the system and its remnants is unknown. Hurricane Irene caused extensive flooding in Cuba and Florida, with lesser effects in North Carolina and The Bahamas. Hurricane Lenny was an unusually eastward moving storm in the Caribbean Sea and a strong late season storm. It caused extensive damage in the Lesser Antilles in the month of November. Collectively, the storms of the 1999 Atlantic hurricane season caused at least 465 fatalities and $5.9 billion in losses.