The Hurricane Season of 1966

The 1966 hurricane season began early and ended late. While the number of storms was only slightly above normal, hurricane days totalled 50, well above the yearly average of 33 and the second highest of record tabulated since 1954 (table 1). Hurricane days for June and November exceeded the previous 12-y ear totals. Except for a late May-early June hurricane in 1825, Alma, the first tropical cyclone of the 1966 season, made landfall in the United States earlier in the season than any other hurricane of record. Faith and Inez were tracked over very long distances (fig. 1). The 65 advisories on Inez were the most ever issued for a hurricane and the total of 151 bulletins and advisories also exceeded previous advices on a hurricane. The unusual path of Inez made her the first single storm of record to affect the West Indies, the Bahamas, Florida, and Mexico. She was also the first of record, so late in the season, to cross the entire Gulf of Mexico without recurvature. The season continued active through July. Since 1871, there have been only thee other years when the fifth tropica.1 cyclone developed as early as July. These were 1933 (fifth tropical cyclone on July 25, total of 21 cyclones),