ORLANDO, Fla. – By November, tropical activity is typically on the decline. After all, hurricane season peters out on Nov. 30.
But that doesn’t mean Florida’s in the clear just yet.
Since the late 1800s, there have only been three hurricanes that have made landfall in the Sunshine State during the month of November.
Tropical systems become less frequent in November because atmospheric conditions typically become less favorable.
It’s harder for storms that do develop to make landfall in the U.S. because cold fronts become more common. These fronts help to steer them away from the east coast or keep them confined to the Caribbean.
The most common track for storms in November is a northeast path originating from the western Caribbean to the Bahamas.
As for the three November hurricanes Florida has seen so far, they are as follows:
HURRICANE NICOLE — 2022
The most recent November hurricane, of course, was Hurricane Nicole.
Nicole made landfall as a Category 1 storm near Vero Beach nearly two years ago on Nov. 10, ravaging the state’s east coast.
While perhaps not as strong as other major hurricanes (though rest assured, Category 1 is still plenty powerful), Nicole followed hot on the trail of Hurricane Ian, which had devastated much of the state earlier in the season.
Nicole weakened to a tropical storm within about an hour of making landfall, but it still racked up plenty of damage. In all, the NWS says that Nicole caused over $1 billion in damages and directly killed five people. Four of those victims were in Orange County.
Prior to Nicole, you have to go back more than 30 years to find a November hurricane landfall in Florida.
HURRICANE KATE — 1985
Hurricane Kate made landfall near Mexico Beach on Nov. 19 as a Category 2 storm.
The storm had maximum sustained winds of 100 mph and packed winds of 120 mph — Category 3 status — over the Gulf of Mexico.
While Kate initially traveled south of Florida over Cuba, its path eventually curved, causing it to ram right into the panhandle. Weather officials said that rainfall totals averaged between 4 and 6 inches in the largest areas of impact in North Florida and southwest Georgia.
According to state officials, four deaths in Florida were attributed to Kate.
In the Keys, a man and elderly woman drowned when their small boat capsized, and another man was electrocuted after he stepped on a downed power line. Meanwhile, a 38-year-old was killed when a tree fell on his truck in North Florida.
In all, state officials said that Kate racked up an estimated $300 million in damages in the U.S.
But 50 years separated Kate and the first hurricane to make landfall in the Sunshine State in November.
“YANKEE HURRICANE” — 1935
An unnamed hurricane — also known as the “Yankee Hurricane” — made landfall north of Miami Beach on Nov. 4 with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph.
This was an odd storm, originating near Bermuda and moving west toward the U.S. The hurricane was forced south down the eastern seaboard, eventually making landfall in Florida.
The NOAA reports that the Yankee Hurricane (nicknamed because it came from up north, as many “snowbirds” did around that time of year) swamped the Miami Beach area with around 3 feet of storm surge, and 98 mph winds tore into plate-glass windows at the shopping district and other nearby homes.
However, construction standards had been raised in the area after the Great Miami Hurricane of 1926, which was one of the strongest hurricanes in state history.
And thanks to the extensive warnings ahead of landfall, the NOAA said that fatalities were mitigated to only five deaths by the time the Yankee Hurricane passed through.
The Yankee Hurricane crossed through the peninsula in about eight hours, and the storm petered out in the eastern Gulf of Mexico over the next couple of days.