It was feared that the hurricane had damaged the local grape crop, which was important to the area. As a result of the storm, property damage was great in San Diego. The only recorded hurricane to ever strike San Diego was wreaking havoc. On Oct. 2, 1858, the only known hurricane to hit Southern California slammed into San Diego. With Norbert poised to bring heavy rain and high surf to southern California, we take a look back at the strongest tropical cyclone to affect the area in recorded history. A hurricane in the eastern Pacific moved northward from the warm waters of the tropics toward the California coast. There wasn’t even a Saffir-Simpson measuring system for hurricanes. Even so, the research from Chenoweth and Landsea has proven that the unusual can happen. On Oct. 2, 1858 the hurricane got close to San Diego but quickly shifted west. The likely track of the hurricane is pieced together from U.S. Army weather observers’ data as nearing San Diego, then riding the coastline toward the Channel Islands. This largely was not the case, and, in fact, farmers benefited from the heavy rain as it allowed them to produce a substantial grain crop, something they had been unsuccessful with for several years previous. (MORE: Is the Eastern Pacific a Hurricane Threat to the U.S.?). Copyright © 2020, University of Rhode Island. The start of the Civil War was still three years away. That hurricane approached San Diego on October 2, 1858, as a Category 1 storm with 80-mph winds. At least three ships in the bay were damaged, two of them blown onto the beach. THE SAN DIEGO HURRICANE OF 2 OCTOBER 1858 The discovery of a hurricane that directly impacted San Diego, California, nearly 150 yr ago has implications for residents and risk managers in their planning for extreme events for the region. That one California hurricane struck San Diego on Oct. 2, 1858, producing sustained hurricane-force winds there and resulting in extensive property … filled the air in all directions. On 2 October 1858, estimated sustained hurricane-force winds produced by a tropical cyclone located a short distance offshore were felt in San Diego, California. Linda, the 1939 tropical storm, and possibly the 1858 San Diego hurricane occurred during years when El Nino had brought unusually warm water to the U.S. West Coast. The San Diego Hurricane of 2 October 1858. 1860 San Diego population is 731. October 2, 1858 San Diego is hit with a 75mph Category 1 hurricane, the biggest on record, causing some homes to collapse and boats to wash ashore but no deaths. Researchers have discovered that a fifth tropical cyclone, a hurricane, impacted San Diego, CA, on October 2, 1858. It is the only known tropical cyclone to impact California as a hurricane, although other systems impacted California as tropical storms. Hurricanes typically track due west in this ocean basin, however, this storm moved to the north-northeast. Today the population of San Diego County is over 3 million. 1/10Arrow LeftArrow RightAmazing Hurricane Images: Felix - 2007 (NASA)Powerful Category 5 Felix was photographed over the western Caribbean by a crew member aboard the International Space Station on September 3, 2007. And the Civil War had not yet come. A newspaper reporter described the scene: “The violence of the wind still increasing…tearing down houses and everything that was in its way. The 1858 San Diego hurricane was a very rare California hurricane. The year was 1858. “1858 San Diego hurricane.” Wikipedia. There hasn’t been a hurricane since Tuesday October 2nd, 1858 – that was more than 160 years ago. A year later in 1977, Hurricane Doreen hit California, and was considered the worst tropical cyclone to hit the state in over 30 years. Presentation: “The San Diego Hurricane of October 2, 1858.” American Meteorological Society Forum: Living in the Coastal Zone, January 11, 2005. http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/hurdat/presentations/ams-sandiego.ppt#14. In terms of today’s damage estimates, the storm caused around $500 million in damage. The possibilities of a hurricane occurring in San Diego, CA are truly very slim – but not impossible. In 1939, a tropical storm made landfall in California, and tropical storm Nora brought flooding rain to California and Arizona in 1997, but such storms are extremely unusual. “That one California hurricane struck San Diego on Oct. 2, 1858, producing sustained hurricane-force winds there and resulting in extensive property damages. A stage coach trip from Missouri to the young state of California took nearly a month. The streets, alleys and roads…were swept as clean as if a thousand brooms had been laboriously employed for months.”, The article went on: “The damage to property was considerable; houses were unroofed and blown down, trees uprooted and fences destroyed. It was Oct. 2, 1858. There has only been one hurricane in recorded history in California. 45 days of rain destroyed 1/4th of the taxable land in California and bankrupted the state. Image credit: NOAA/Google Earth. One-hundred-and-forty-eight years later, the Category 1 storm strike – and the knowledge that it will eventually happen again – connects San Diego to a controversial scientific debate about the effects of the earth’s changing climate on hurricanes. The last time San Diego, CA ever worried about a hurricane the population was 4,325. Using scientific data and numerous written reports on the weather and resulting damage, the researchers concluded that, in fact, San Diego was struck by a minimal hurricane on October 2, 1858. And in Southern California, the town of San Diego had grown to a little more than four thousand people. With Norbert poised to bring heavy rain and high surf to southern California, we take a look back at the strongest tropical cyclone to affect the area in recorded history. In San Diego there was heavy rain and great property damage with many homes losing their roofs. On 2 October 1858, estimated sustained hurricane-force winds produced by a tropical cyclone located a short distance offshore were felt in San Diego, California. Use up and down arrows to change selection. A hurricane has wind speeds of 74 mph or greater. Mitigation and Preparation to Response and Recovery, 2013 Hurricane Webinar Series for Educators, 1568- Hurricane Leads to British Conflict, 1559- Florida Hurricane Ruins Spanish Settlement, This hurricane is the only tropical cyclone known to produce hurricane-force winds on the California coast. Some years back, researchers who were looking into that storm stumbled across old newspaper accounts showing that a full-fledged hurricane made a very close approach to San Diego in 1858. In the early days of October, 1858, those four thousand people experienced a storm like no other before it. Unprecedented damage was done in the city and was described as the severest gale ever felt to that date, and it has not been matched or exceeded in severity since. One-hundred-and-forty-eight years later, the Category 1 storm strike – and the knowledge that it will eventually happen again – connects San Diego to a controversial scientific debate about the effects of the earth’s changing climate on hurricanes. Researchers have discovered that a fifth tropical cyclone, a hurricane, impacted San Diego, CA, on October 2, 1858. 1907. On 2 October 1858, estimated sustained hurricane-force winds produced by a tropical cyclone located a short distance offshore were felt in San Diego, California. - The San Diego hurricane of 1858. The 1858 San Diego hurricane was a very rare hur­ri­cane that im­pacted south­ern Cal­i­for­nia. Hurricane Wiki has been running an annual Hurricane Hall of Fame, where the community votes on storms to be inducted into the hall of fame. The hurricane formed in late September 1858, in the East Pacific Ocean. … The first option will be automatically selected. In 1976, Hurricane Kathleen moved from the south into the county as a tropical storm. Coral evidence suggests an. Heavy rain was present along with damaging about 120 km/h (75 mph) winds. Powerful Category 5 Felix was photographed over the western Caribbean by a crew member aboard the International Space Station on September 3, 2007. 1860 San Diego population is 731. There hasn’t been a hurricane since Tuesday October 2nd, 1858 – that was more than 160 years ago. Abraham Lincoln was running for a seat in the U.S. Senate. Below is the list of inductees into Hurricane Wiki's Forum:Hurricane Hall of Fame. It is known as the 1858 San Diego Hurricane. Recently searched locations will be displayed if there is no search query. It was said to have been the “severest gale ever witnessed in San Diego”. Only one managed to reach as far as San Diego in 1858. On 2 October 1858, estimated sustained hurricane-force winds produced by a tropical cyclone located a short distance offshore were felt in San Diego, California. We recognize our responsibility to use data and technology for good. After the storm, it was discovered that three schooners, the Plutus, the Lovely Flora, and the X.L., had blown ashore and a recently constructed windmill had been demolished. © Copyright TWC Product and Technology LLC 2014, 2021, Map showing the position of the 1858 San Diego hurricane on October 2. 9 Ways to Tell the Difference. Can it happen again? Meanwhile, the San Diego hurricane — if that’s what it was — had been largely forgotten and never seriously studied in modern times.