1934 Central America hurricane
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2008-07-13T19:25:37Z
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moved [[1934 Central America Hurricane]] to [[1934 Central America hurricane]]
{{update}}{{Infobox Hurricane
| Name=1934 Central America Hurricane
| Type=hurricane
| Year=1934
| Basin=Atl
| Formed=[[June 4]], [[1934]]
| Dissipated=[[June 21]], [[1934]]
| 1-min winds=80
| Pressure=996
| Damages=2.6
| Inflated=0
| Fatalities=1,000–3000 direct
| Areas=[[Belize]], [[Mexico]], [[Guatemala]], [[Honduras]], [[Louisiana]], [[Maryland]], [[New England]]
| Hurricane season=[[1934 Atlantic hurricane season]]
}}
The '''1934 Central America Hurricane''' is among the deadliest hurricanes on record. Although a weak hurricane, it killed 1,000-3,000 people, mainly from landslides in [[Central America]], and spawned eight tornadoes when it made landfall in [[Louisiana]].
==Storm history==
{{storm path|1934 Central America hurricane track.png}}
The storm formed in the [[Gulf of Honduras]] on [[June 4]], a typical site of formation for June Atlantic tropical cyclones. It moved slowly to the west-southwest, and made landfall in [[Belize]] (then known as British Honduras) on [[June 5]]. The storm maintained tropical storm strength over land while still moving slowly as it executed a counter-clockwise loop over [[Guatemala]], [[El Salvador]], and [[Honduras]]. On the 8th, the storm again reached the [[Caribbean Sea]], and briefly reached minimal hurricane strength off the coast of [[Belize]] on [[June 8]]. It paralleled the coastline before making landfall on the [[Yucatán Peninsula]] on the 9th.
Over the next two days the storm tracked to the west-northwest before executing a second loop in the [[Gulf of Mexico]] on [[June 12]]. On the 15th it turned to the northeast, causing a [[hurricane warning]] to be issued along the [[Louisiana]] coast. The small hurricane made landfall on [[June 16]] near [[Morgan City, Louisiana]] with winds of 75 mph, and quickly weakened over land. The storm accelerated to the northeast through the [[Ohio Valley]] before becoming extratropical near [[Virginia]] on [[June 19]]. The extratropical storm continued through the [[Mid-Atlantic]] states and [[New England]] before dissipating over northeastern [[Quebec]].
==Impact==
The storm's slow movement over and near Belize, Honduras, and other Central American countries likely contributed to deadly flooding and mudslides that resulted in the storm's high death toll. The worst-hit area from the storm was [[Honduras]], though other parts of [[Central America]] were affected as well. The town of [[Ocotepeque]] in Honduras was devastated by the floods and landslides, with one report estimating rain totals up to 25 [[inch]]es. The town's church was the only building left standing after the floods; about 500 people were killed. In all, Honduras received a catastrophic blow from this storm, with death toll estimates between 1,000 and 3,000 people.
The storm killed six people in [[Louisiana]]. Two children were killed when they were swept off their makeshift raft in the heavy seas, a man died in an automobile accident near [[New Iberia, Louisiana]], another person drowned when he tried to swim in [[Bayou Plauqemine]], and one other died in the storm. Between 75 and 150 homes were destroyed; 1,500 others remained uninhabitable. In all there was $2.605 million (1934 [[US dollars]], $37.2 million in 2005 USD) in damage.
==See also==
{{tcportal}}
*[[List of tropical cyclones]]
*[[List of Atlantic hurricanes]]
==External links==
*[http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/general/lib/lib1/nhclib/mwreviews/1934.pdf Monthly Weather Review]
*[http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/atlantic/1934/2/track.gif 1934 Hurricane track Unisys]
[[Category:1934 meteorology]]
[[Category:1934 Atlantic hurricane season|*]]
[[Category:Category 1 Atlantic hurricanes|* (1934)]]
[[Category:Hurricanes in Belize|* (1934)]]
[[Category:Hurricanes in Honduras|* (1934)]]
[[Category:Hurricanes in Quintana Roo|* (1934)]]
[[Category:Hurricanes in Yucatán|* (1934)]]
[[Category:Louisiana hurricanes|* (1934)]]
[[Category:Natural history of Central America]]