Seasonal Summary[]
The 2018 Atlantic Hurricane Season began on June 1st, 2018 and ended on November 30, 2018. The first storm of the season, Alberto, formed on June 5, five days after the official start of the season. Two more tropical cyclones formed in the month of June - Beryl and Chris, which peaked as a Category 2 hurricane. July saw two storms - Debby and Ernesto, the latter of which strengthened into a Category 3 major hurricane, only a few hurricanes had reached that intensity before August. The month of August saw 5 storms forming - Florence, Gordon, Helene, Isaac, and Joyce, of which all but Isaac reached hurricane intensity. The two notable storms that month were Gordon and Helene. Both storms made landfall in Florida and Texas, respectively, at peak intensity as a Category 4 hurricanes. Both states, which were still being recovered from hurricanes Irma and Harvey, respectively, the year before suffered widespread damage from these two hurricanes. Gordon and Helene would at the time be the seventh and eleventh costliest hurricanes in recorded history, until Michael later this year caused more damage than both hurricanes.
September yielded four storms - Kirk, Leslie, Michael, and Nadine, of which Leslie and Michael strengthened into major hurricanes. The most notable storm of the month, the strongest, the most intense, and the costliest hurricane of the season is Hurricane Michael. Michael strengthened into a Category 5 hurricane in the Caribbean Sea, becoming the fourth hurricane in the span of three years to reach Category 5 strength (the other three being hurricanes Matthew, Irma, and Maria). Michael then went on to make landfall in Florida as a Category 5 hurricane, making Michael the first Category 5 hurricane to make landfall at that intensity since Andrew of 1992. Michael then left Florida, but stalled over the Gulf of Mexico just west of Florida, dumping large amount of rain, then making a second Florida landfall, and traveled up the East Coast of the United States. Upon dissipation, Michael became the fourth costliest hurricane in recorded history, only behind hurricanes Sandy, Maria, Harvey, and Katrina, while also surpassing Hurricane Irma as Florida's costliest hurricane.
The month of October have seen four storms - Oscar, Patty, Rafael, and Sara. The most notable storm of the month, as well as the deadliest in the season is Hurricane Sara. Sara caused a total of 2,136 deaths, many from Haiti. Many of the damages caused by Sara were from the New York metropolitan area. The season concluded with the formation of Tropical Storm Tony in November.
Storms[]
Tropical Storm Alberto[]
| Tropical storm (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | June 5 – June 9 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 60 mph (95 km/h) (1-min) 997 mbar (hPa) |
Tropical Storm Beryl[]
| Tropical storm (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | June 18 – June 22 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 65 mph (100 km/h) (1-min) 995 mbar (hPa) |
Hurricane Chris[]
| Category 2 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | June 25 – June 29 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 105 mph (165 km/h) (1-min) 970 mbar (hPa) |
Tropical Storm Debby[]
| Tropical storm (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | July 10 – July 11 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 50 mph (85 km/h) (1-min) 1008 mbar (hPa) |
Hurricane Ernesto[]
| Category 3 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | July 23 – July 30 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 130 mph (205 km/h) (1-min) 959 mbar (hPa) |
Hurricane Florence[]
| Category 1 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | August 4 – August 8 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 90 mph (150 km/h) (1-min) 982 mbar (hPa) |
Hurricane Gordon[]
| Category 4 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | August 13 – August 21 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 150 mph (240 km/h) (1-min) 936 mbar (hPa) |
Hurricane Helene[]
| Category 4 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | August 17 – August 22 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 145 mph (230 km/h) (1-min) 938 mbar (hPa) |
Tropical Storm Isaac[]
| Tropical storm (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | August 24 – August 25 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 40 mph (65 km/h) (1-min) 1007 mbar (hPa) |
Hurricane Joyce[]
| Category 1 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | August 28 – August 31 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 90 mph (150 km/h) (1-min) 984 mbar (hPa) |
Tropical Storm Kirk[]
| Tropical storm (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | September 3 – September 4 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 45 mph (75 km/h) (1-min) 1003 mbar (hPa) |
Hurricane Leslie[]
| Category 3 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | September 6 – September 9 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 130 mph (205 km/h) (1-min) 961 mbar (hPa) |
Hurricane Michael[]
| Category 5 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | September 12 – September 19 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 190 mph (305 km/h) (1-min) 906 mbar (hPa) |
Tropical Storm Nadine[]
| Tropical storm (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | September 17 – September 18 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 65 mph (100 km/h) (1-min) 998 mbar (hPa) |
Tropical Storm Oscar[]
| Tropical storm (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | October 9 – October 11 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 60 mph (95 km/h) (1-min) 1000 mbar (hPa) |
Hurricane Patty[]
| Category 1 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | October 14 – October 17 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 85 mph (140 km/h) (1-min) 983 mbar (hPa) |
Tropical Storm Rafael[]
| Tropical storm (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | October 18 – October 20 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 40 mph (65 km/h) (1-min) 1005 mbar (hPa) |
Hurricane Sara[]
| Category 3 hurricane (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | October 22 – October 26 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 130 mph (205 km/h) (1-min) 958 mbar (hPa) |
Tropical Storm Tony[]
| Tropical storm (SSHWS) | |
  | |
| Duration | November 16 – November 18 |
|---|---|
| Peak intensity | 70 mph (110 km/h) (1-min) 996 mbar (hPa) |
Timeline[]
Seasonal effects[]
The following table lists all of the storms that formed in the 2018 Atlantic hurricane season. It includes their duration, names, affected areas, damages, and death totals. Deaths in parentheses are additional and indirect (an example of an indirect death would be a traffic accident), but were still related to that storm. Damage and deaths include totals while the storm was extratropical, a wave, or a low, and all of the damage figures are in 2018 USD (the listed damage figures are in millions).
| Storm name |
Dates active | Storm category at peak intensity |
Max 1-min wind mph (km/h) |
Min. press. (mbar) |
Areas affected | Damage (USD) |
Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alberto | June 5 - June 9 | Tropical storm | 60 (95) | 997 | Mexico, Cuba, Southeastern United States (Florida) | 2 | 0 (2) |
| Beryl | June 18 - June 22 | Tropical storm | 65 (100) | 995 | Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico, Northeastern United States | 150 | 25 (10) |
| Chris | June 25 - June 29 | Category 2 hurricane | 105 (165) | 970 | Venezuela, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Belize, Mexico | 20 | 0 (2) |
| Debby | July 10 - July 11 | Tropical storm | 50 (85) | 1008 | Lesser Antilles | Minimal | None |
| Ernesto | July 23 - July 30 | Category 3 hurricane | 130 (205) | 959 | None | None | None |
| Florence | August 4 - August 8 | Category 1 hurricane | 90 (150) | 982 | The Bahamas, Southeastern United States | Minimal | None |
| Gordon | August 13 - August 21 | Category 4 hurricane | 150 (240) | 936 | Lesser Antilles, Hispaniola, Cuba, Central America, Mexico, Southeastern United States | 30,000 | 50 (49) |
| Helene | August 17 - August 22 | Category 4 hurricane | 145 (230) | 938 | Lesser Antilles, Central America, Mexico, US Gulf Coast (Texas) | 25,000 | 63 (72) |
| Isaac | August 24 - August 25 | Tropical storm | 40 (65) | 1007 | Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico | Minimal | None |
| Joyce | August 28 - August 31 | Category 1 hurricane | 90 (150) | 984 | None | None | None |
| Kirk | September 3 - September 4 | Tropical storm | 45 (75) | 1008 | Mexico | Minimal | None |
| Leslie | September 6 - September 9 | Category 3 hurricane | 130 (205) | 961 | None | None | None |
| Michael | September 12 - September 19 | Category 5 hurricane | 190 (305) | 906 | Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, Cuba, The Bahamas, United States East Coast | 75,000 | 232 |
| Nadine | September 17 - September 18 | Tropical storm | 65 (100) | 998 | None | None | None |
| Oscar | October 9 - October 11 | Tropical storm | 60 (95) | 1000 | None | None | None |
| Patty | October 14 - October 17 | Category 1 hurricane | 85 (140) | 983 | Central America, Mexico, US Gulf Coast (Louisiana and Mississippi, Northeastern United States | 1,500 | 34 |
| Rafael | October 18 - October 20 | Tropical storm | 40 (65) | 1005 | Central America, Cayman Islands, Cuba, The Bahamas, Florida | Minimal | None |
| Sara | October 22 - October 26 | Category 3 hurricane | 130 (205) | 958 | Lesser Antilles, Venezuela, Hispaniola, The Bahamas, Northeastern United States | 15,000 | 2,136 |
| Tony | November 16 - November 18 | Tropical storm | 70 (110) | 996 | Lesser Antilles | Minimal | None |
Storm names[]
See also: Tropical cyclone naming
The following names were used to name tropical cyclones this year. This is the same list used in the 2012 Season, with the exception of Sara, which replaced Sandy. The name Sara was used for the first and only time this year. Unused names are marked in gray.
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Retirement[]
See also:List of retired Atlantic hurricane names
Because of the amount of deaths and damage these storms caused, the names Gordon, Helene, Michael, and Sara were retired after the season, and will never be used again for another North Atlantic tropical cyclone. These names will be replaced with Gerald, Harley, Mark, and Sophie, respectively, for the 2024 Season. The list below will be used for the 2024 Season:
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