Hurricanes that hit Hidalgo County, Texas: hurricane history

35 storms have passed within 50 km of Hidalgo County from 1851 to 2023, coloured by intensity on the map.

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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 Hidalgo County

The record holds 35 tropical cyclones whose tracks passed within 50 km of Hidalgo County, Texas between 1851 and 2023. The busiest month is September, with 14 of them. The strongest, measured where each came closest to the place, reached category 4 strength. 4 of the storms have no wind speed in the record.

  • 35storms within 50 km
  • 6major (category 3 to 5) near here
  • 14at 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 Hidalgo County?

Category near hereStormsShare
Tropical depression514%
Tropical storm1234%
Category 1411%
Category 2411%
Category 3411%
Category 426%
Category 500%
Unknown intensity411%

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

Hidalgo County storms over time

Storms by decade
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 4 in 1850s.1850s1880s1900s1920s1940s1960s1980s2000s2020s

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
1870s2
1880s3
1890s1
1900s1
1910s2
1920s1
1930s3
1940s1
1950s3
1960s1
1970s3
1980s3
1990s2
2000s1
2010s2
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 14 in Sep.Jan0Feb0Mar0Apr0May0Jun8Jul6Aug7Sep14Oct0Nov0Dec0
Show the numbers
PeriodCount
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr0
May0
Jun8
Jul6
Aug7
Sep14
Oct0
Nov0
Dec0

Strongest storms near Hidalgo County

  • Unnamed storm of August 1880 (North Atlantic)4 August 1880 to 14 August 1880, peak Category 4 (130 kt), 931 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of August 1916 (North Atlantic)12 August 1916 to 20 August 1916, peak Category 4 (115 kt), 932 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of August 1933 (North Atlantic)22 August 1933 to 5 September 1933, Category 3 (110 kt) near here, peak Category 5 (140 kt), 954 hPa
  • Beulah (1967)5 September 1967 to 24 September 1967, Category 3 (110 kt) near here, peak Category 5 (140 kt), 923 hPa
  • Allen (1980)31 July 1980 to 11 August 1980, Category 3 (100 kt) near here, peak Category 5 (165 kt), 899 hPa

Most recent storms near Hidalgo County

  • Harold (2023)21 August 2023 to 23 August 2023, peak Tropical storm (50 kt), 996 hPa
  • Hanna (2020)23 July 2020 to 26 July 2020, peak Category 1 (80 kt), 973 hPa
  • Hermine (2010)3 September 2010 to 10 September 2010, peak Tropical storm (55 kt), 990 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.

A storm that came near several counties counts in each one, so county counts add up to more than the state's.

Notable storms near Hidalgo County

  • Allen (1980)31 July 1980 to 11 August 1980, peak Category 5 (165 kt), 899 hPa
  • Beulah (1967)5 September 1967 to 24 September 1967, peak Category 5 (140 kt), 923 hPa
  • Bret (1999)18 August 1999 to 25 August 1999, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 944 hPa

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