2023 Hurricane Season wrap-up: 2023: 4th most named storms

There it is folks! Everything does come to an end, and so did this hurricane season!

Opposed to what many might think, or how it might have seemed, this season was very busy. The 2023 Atlantic Hurricane season had 21 storms, but only 19 were named as there was a no-name storm that formed on January 16, a few hundred miles east of the Mid-Atlantic coast. This one went unnoticed by many, even in the meteorology world.

This 2023 season was fueled by the very warm, well above-average, tropical waters, and periods of tranquility in windshear, enough to make over 20 storms spin up, including those that did not get to be officially granted a name. The presence of El Niño did not really put a dent in the tropical activity as the season was above average, and there were still 3 U.S. landfalling named storms, 4 of which made landfall in the Caribbean. And then there was the last storm of the season, Potential Tropical Cyclone 21, which made landfall in Nicaragua.

10 out of the 21 storms (including the one in January and PTC21) were at or passed 60 degrees West, so basically from the Lesser Antilles to the Americas. The others were 11 storms that stayed over the open Atlantic Ocean waters.

The season officially started with the first named system, Arlene, which formed over the eastern Gulf of Mexico. It moved southward and dissipated before reaching the northern coast of Cuba.

African tropical wave activity started early! The second named system was born from an African tropical wave close to 1500 miles east of the Caribbean, more than halfway (closer to Africa) between the two hemispheres. The Windward Islands received plenty of rain and tropical storm-force winds.

Don became the first hurricane of the season. It reached category 1 status on July 22, and luckily it stayed offshore, over the open northern Atlantic waters.

Tropical Storm Gert at the beginning of August became a relentless storm. It dissipated, came back to life, and made turns and loops just to the northeast of the Caribbean. It finally came to its end after whirling around Idalia in late August.

Franklin became the second hurricane of the season, and it was the second named system to directly strike the Caribbean. Franklin specifically hit the Dominican Republic as a tropical storm, killing two people and displacing many as over 500 homes were damaged by the water. After it emerged over the Atlantic, the storm gained strength and reached a major category hurricane, the first of the season on August 28.

It was a massive system, with a well-defined eye, going through several eye replacement cycles. Idalia gave this storm a beating too, as much of Idalia´s outflow hindered Franklin´s organization, weakening the system as it moved over the Atlantic Ocean.

Tropical Storm Harold was the first named system to make landfall in the United States. Tropical storm-force winds were recorded along the southern Texas coast as well as a 2-foot storm surge and between 2 and 4 inches of rain. Northern Mexico also took on impacts with over 4 inches of rain falling in Piedras Negras in a short amount of time. Its remnants even impacted the southwestern region of the United States where heavy rains were recorded. One person died and one was missing in Las Vegas.

The big story maker for the U.S. was Hurricane Idalia. This was a Major Category 4 Hurricane at landfall on August 30 in the Big Bend region of Florida. Idalia struck one of the least populated areas of Florida, but it came with enough power to make it memorable and still impact many. It is estimated that damages range between 2 and 5 billion dollars. Thousands were displaced and 4 people died, in Florida and Georgia combined. Idalia crossed the Southeast and emerged over the Atlantic bringing a long round of rip currents and high surf for much of the East Coast during the Labor Day Weekend.

Lee made landfall in southeastern Canada as an extratropical cyclone, after it was a category 3 hurricane while traveling over the open Atlantic waters. This system was big and caused dangerous surf and rip currents along the East Coast. Three fatalities were reported.

Tropical Storm Ophelia was also one of the books. It was the 3rd named system to directly impact the United States. It made landfall on September 22 near Emerald Island, North Carolina. Floodwaters damaged many homes and the storm´s winds downed trees and power lines.

Tropical Storm Philippe was a slow one. It also doesn´t help that it came from Africa as a tropical wave, slowly gaining strength, so there was a long time to watch it. It made landfall in Barbuda, leaving thousands without power and running water across many of the small islands in the northeastern Caribbean.

On October 22 another storm made landfall in Barbuda, Tammy. It left many residents with a second round of power outages and caused some evacuations.

This season is a good reminder for many residents that although there might be an atmospheric pattern in place that could put a hinder of activity, it is not always 100% set in stone. There are multiple variables to this big hurricane recipe. It only takes one storm to make it a busy season for you or your loved ones. As we move through the holidays, let's enjoy our loved ones, and keep in mind that another season is less than 6 months away and there are several ways to add to the “preparedness can” to be ready for the 2024 season.