Although several hurricanes have struck the New England area, long time residents will never forget the 1938 New England hurricane. The storm was a traditional Cape Verde storm that began as a tropical wave off the coast of west Africa during the first week of September.
As it progressed across the Atlantic it first became a tropical storm, then was upgraded to a hurricane on September 15, well to the east of Puerto Rico. By September 19, it began to curve as it passed north of Hispaniola. By this time, it was a strong hurricane.
A cold upper trough located near the Great Lakes pulled the storm northward, and it moved rapidly. Because the hurricane never struck any islands, sparse ship reports gave the only clues to the intensity of the storm. There were no satellite pictures to alert meteorologists about the storm's forward speed. By late morning on September 21, it became apparent that the storm would stay near the east coast of the United States and move north.
The storm moved very rapidly. At about 7:00 a.m., it was east of Cape Hatteras. By 2:30 p.m., the eye of the hurricane was over Long Island. The unusual speed of the hurricane made it impossible to issue hurricane warnings. Forecasters had no idea the storm would be traveling at 70 miles per hour!
The storm reached Long Island and southern New England with great ferocity, with a high storm surge and incredible wind gusts. The tide completely enveloped Fire Island on the south side of Long Island. Over 150 homes were destroyed at Westhampton. There was massive destruction to coastal areas on Long Island and the coastal areas of Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Wind gusts of over 100 miles per hour were measured at New London, Connecticut, and gusts of over 180 miles per hour were recorded at the Blue Hill Observatory south of Boston, Massachusetts. Providence, Rhode Island experienced terrible flooding as the tide, even inside the city, rose to almost 14 feet.
Damage wasn't confined to coastal areas. In Hartford, Connecticut there was widespread wind damage and significant flooding around the Connecticut River. In Springfield, Massachusetts, over sixteen hundred trees were felled by the fierce winds.
During the night the storm weakened as it moved to the north northwest along Lake Champlain.
The 1938 storm was a category 3 on the Saffir-Simpson Scale. Damage exceeded $306 million. Six hundred people were killed in the storm.
