Hurricane History Map

Canada storm history

126 storms have passed within 50 km of Canada from 1851 to 2023, drawn on the map and coloured by intensity.

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Years1842 to 2026
Ocean basin

Choosing a minimum category hides storms with no wind speed in the record. To see which storms have passed near you, search a town or ZIP code, or tap the map.

Key
  • Tropical depression Winds below 34 knots (39 mph)
  • Tropical storm 34 to 63 knots (39 to 73 mph)
  • Category 1 64 to 82 knots (74 to 95 mph)
  • Category 2 83 to 95 knots (96 to 110 mph)
  • Category 3 96 to 112 knots (111 to 129 mph), major
  • Category 4 113 to 136 knots (130 to 156 mph), major
  • Category 5 137 knots (157 mph) or more, major
  • Unknown intensity No wind speed in the record
  • Post-tropical Storm has become post-tropical (dashed line)

How to read the lines. Each line is the track of one storm, drawn through its six-hourly positions and coloured by its intensity at each point (the Saffir-Simpson scale), so a line changes colour as the storm strengthens or weakens. Tap a line for its details, or tap anywhere else to see which storms have passed nearby. Weaker storms appear as you zoom in. Hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones are the same kind of storm with different names in different oceans.

Storms near Canada

The record holds 126 tropical cyclones whose tracks passed within 50 km of Canada between 1851 and 2023. The busiest month is September, with 50 of them. The strongest, measured where each came closest to the place, reached category 2 strength. 7 of the storms have no wind speed in the record.

  • 126storms within 50 km
  • 0major (category 3 to 5) near here
  • 52at category 1 strength or more

A storm counts once, however many times it came close. The category is the storm's strongest point within 50 km, which can be weaker than its peak elsewhere.

How strong were the storms near Canada?

Category near hereStormsShare
Tropical depression97%
Tropical storm5846%
Category 14536%
Category 276%
Category 300%
Category 400%
Category 500%
Unknown intensity76%

The agency behind most of the intensity figures here is the NOAA National Hurricane Center (HURDAT2, Atlantic).

Canada storms over time

Storms by decade
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 17 in 1890s.1850s1870s1890s1910s1930s1950s1970s1990s2010s

The 2020s only run to 2023, so that bar is for a shorter period. This place's record starts in 1851, and records before the satellite era (about the 1960s) are far less complete.

Show the numbers
PeriodCount
1850s4
1860s11
1870s15
1880s7
1890s17
1900s1
1910s3
1920s2
1930s4
1940s3
1950s5
1960s8
1970s11
1980s6
1990s9
2000s12
2010s6
2020s2

Earlier decades hold fewer storms partly because they were harder to see. Before weather satellites (about the 1960s) many storms that stayed at sea went unrecorded, so compare decades with care.

Storms by month
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 50 in Sep.Jan1Feb0Mar0Apr0May0Jun2Jul12Aug40Sep50Oct20Nov1Dec0
Show the numbers
PeriodCount
Jan1
Feb0
Mar0
Apr0
May0
Jun2
Jul12
Aug40
Sep50
Oct20
Nov1
Dec0

Strongest storms near Canada

  • Ginny (1963)17 October 1963 to 30 October 1963, peak Category 2 (95 kt), 948 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of September 1866 (North Atlantic)19 September 1866 to 24 September 1866, peak Category 2 (90 kt)
  • Unnamed storm of August 1871 (North Atlantic)27 August 1871 to 3 September 1871, peak Category 2 (90 kt)
  • Unnamed storm of August 1927 (North Atlantic)18 August 1927 to 29 August 1927, Category 2 (90 kt) near here, peak Category 3 (110 kt), 950 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of August 1893 (North Atlantic)15 August 1893 to 19 August 1893, peak Category 2 (85 kt)
  • Michael (2000)15 October 2000 to 20 October 2000, peak Category 2 (85 kt), 965 hPa

Most recent storms near Canada

  • Unnamed storm of January 2023 (North Atlantic)15 January 2023 to 18 January 2023, peak Tropical storm (60 kt), 976 hPa
  • Larry (2021)31 August 2021 to 11 September 2021, Category 1 (70 kt) near here, peak Category 3 (110 kt), 953 hPa
  • Arthur (2014)28 June 2014 to 9 July 2014, Tropical storm (60 kt) near here, peak Category 2 (85 kt), 973 hPa
  • Leslie (2012)28 August 2012 to 12 September 2012, peak Category 1 (70 kt), 968 hPa
  • Ophelia (2011)20 September 2011 to 4 October 2011, Tropical storm (60 kt) near here, peak Category 4 (120 kt), 940 hPa

Many of these storms killed people and destroyed homes. The figures are the official record's, and this page says nothing about their human cost.

Canada ranks number 27 among countries and territories for the number of storms.

Notable storms near Canada with their own pages

  • Carol (1953)28 August 1953 to 9 September 1953, peak Category 5 (140 kt), 929 hPa
  • Gerda (1969)7 September 1969 to 12 September 1969, peak Category 3 (105 kt), 980 hPa
  • Gloria (1985)16 September 1985 to 2 October 1985, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 920 hPa
  • Hortense (1996)3 September 1996 to 16 September 1996, peak Category 4 (120 kt), 935 hPa
  • Able (1950)12 August 1950 to 24 August 1950, peak Category 3 (110 kt), 953 hPa
  • Gladys (1964)13 September 1964 to 25 September 1964, peak Category 4 (115 kt), 945 hPa
  • Bill (2009)15 August 2009 to 26 August 2009, peak Category 4 (115 kt), 943 hPa
  • Larry (2021)31 August 2021 to 11 September 2021, peak Category 3 (110 kt), 953 hPa
  • Erin (2001)1 September 2001 to 17 September 2001, peak Category 3 (105 kt), 968 hPa
  • Earl (2010)24 August 2010 to 6 September 2010, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 927 hPa
  • Igor (2010)8 September 2010 to 23 September 2010, peak Category 4 (135 kt), 924 hPa
  • Donna (1960)29 August 1960 to 14 September 1960, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 930 hPa

Other countries

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