Hurricane Connie

Infobox Hurricane
Name=Hurricane Connie
Type=hurricane
Year=1955
Basin=Atl
Image location=Hurricane Connie Radar.gif


Formed=August 3, 1955
Dissipated=August 15, 1955
1-min winds=125
Pressure=936
Da

Inflated=0
Fatalities=20 direct
Areas=North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, New England
Hurricane season=1955 Atlantic hurricane season

Hurricane Connie was the first in a series of hurricanes to strike North Carolina during the 1955 Atlantic hurricane season. Connie struck as a Category 2, causing major flooding and inflicting extensive damage to the Outer Banks and inland to Raleigh.

Meteorological history

The precursor to Hurricane Connie was a tropical wave that moved across the Tropical Atlantic. A surface circulation was reported by ships on August 3, and a tropical depression was born. It became a tropical storm later that day, but much of the convection was located to the north of the circulation due to the rapid west-northwest movement of the storm. As it slowed down, another circulation reformed to the northeast, and Connie rapidly strengthened on the 5th to a 135 mph Category 4 hurricane.

The hurricane passed to the north of the Lesser Antilles on August 6 as it reached its peak intensity of 145 mph winds, causing rain and heavy surf. Connie retained this intensity for the next 4 days, but with high pressure to its north, it moved slowly towards the North Carolina coast. Upwelling, cool air above it, and dry air to the north weakened Connie greatly, causing a minimal hurricane landfall on the 12th near Morehead City, North Carolina.

Connie remained a tropical storm well inland until Pennsylvania, where it quickly declined until dissipation on August 15 over the Great Lakes.

Impact

Although Connie moved northeast of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, moderate to heavy rains fell across those island groups. Once it struck the United States, Connie caused extensive flooding in the Mid-Atlantic states and New England. When Hurricane Diane struck five days later, the rainfall from Connie contributed to Diane's flood-related destruction and loss of life. Rivers and streams throughout Connecticut rapidly overflowed their banks on 19 August 1955. Downtown Winsted, Connecticut was half destroyed when the Mad River flooded. In [http://1955flood.myphotoalbum.com Waterbury, Connecticut] , the Naugatuck River carried away entire tenements. Eighty-seven people died in Connecticut, twenty nine of them in Waterbury. Damage is uncertain, but is estimated at $3.3 billion (2005 USD). Damage between Connie and Diane combined is between $700 million and $800 million (1955 USD).

Retirement

The name Connie was retired and will not be used for an Atlantic hurricane again.

Media

See also

* List of Atlantic hurricanes
* List of retired Atlantic hurricane names
* List of wettest tropical cyclones in Massachusetts

External links

* [http://www.hpc.ncep.noaa.gov/tropical/rain/connie1955.html HPC Rainfall Page on Connie]
* [http://www.usatoday.com/weather/huricane/wconnie.htm Report at USA TODAY]
* [http://www.courant.com/flood Flood of '55 from THE HARTFORD COURANT]