Hurricane Charlie (1951)

Hurricane Charlie

Category 4 major hurricane (SSHWS/NWS)
Surface weather analysis of the hurricane on August 19
Formed	August 12, 1951
Dissipated	August 23, 1951
Highest winds	1-minute sustained: 130 mph (215 km/h)
Lowest pressure	958 mbar (hPa); 28.29 inHg
Fatalities	252+ total
Damage	$75 million (1951 USD)
Areas affected	Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, Jamaica, Cuba, Cayman Islands, Isle of Youth, Yucatán Peninsula, Texas
Part of the 1951 Atlantic hurricane season

Hurricane Charlie was the deadliest tropical cyclone of the 1951 Atlantic hurricane season. The third named storm, second hurricane, and second major hurricane of the season, it developed from a tropical wave east of the Lesser Antilles. It moved briskly west-northwest, passing between the islands of Dominica and Guadeloupe. It strengthened to a hurricane in the eastern Caribbean Sea, and it struck Jamaica with winds near Category 3 intensity. It strengthened to a peak intensity of 135 mph (215 km/h) prior to landfall on Quintana Roo, Yucatán Peninsula. It weakened over land, and it re-strengthened over the Gulf of Mexico before it made a final landfall near Tampico.

In its path, Charlie caused more than 250 deaths. The hurricane produced Jamaica's deadliest natural disaster of the 20th century, causing more than 152 deaths and $50,000,000 in damages. The hurricane was described as Tampico's worst tropical cyclone since 1936, and it caused more than 100 fatalities in the surrounding areas. Many bodies were not recovered after flooding. The hurricane produced peak gusts of 160 mph (260 km/h) at the airport, and its strongest sustained winds were unmeasured in mainland Mexico, suggesting that it may have been a Category 4 hurricane at landfall.

On August 12, a tropical wave organized to a tropical depression about 930 miles (1,495 km) east-southeast of the island of Barbados. Operationally, the system was not detected until August 14, and it was believed to have been an area of low pressure when it moved through the eastern Caribbean. It moved to the west-northwest, and it slowly organized to a minimal tropical storm on August 14. Although Hurricane hunters reported winds of hurricane force in squalls, the system was discounted as an easterly wave. On August 15, Tropical Storm Charlie quickly intensified, attaining maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 km/h) after passing through the Lesser Antilles. The small center of circulation passed between Dominica and Guadeloupe in the early morning hours.