000 ABNT30 KNHC 011149 TWSAT MONTHLY TROPICAL WEATHER SUMMARY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL 800 AM EDT SAT SEP 1 2001 SUMMARY OF TROPICAL CYCLONE ACTIVITY FOR AUGUST 2001... FOR THE NORTH ATLANTIC...CARIBBEAN SEA AND THE GULF OF MEXICO... TROPICAL CYCLONE ACTIVITY WAS A BIT BELOW NORMAL IN AUGUST. AN AVERAGE AUGUST HAS THREE NAMED STORMS...OF WHICH TWO BECOME HURRICANES. THERE WERE THREE TROPICAL STORMS DURING AUGUST... BARRY...CHANTAL...AND DEAN...BUT NO HURRICANES. THIS IS THE FIRST AUGUST TO HAVE NO HURRICANES SINCE 1997. THIS IS ALSO THE FIRST SEASON SINCE 1988 TO HAVE NO HURRICANES OBSERVED PRIOR TO SEPTEMBER. BARRY FORMED FROM A TROPICAL WAVE OVER THE EASTERN GULF OF MEXICO ON 2 AUGUST. INITIALLY MOVING WEST-NORTHWEST...THE STORM SLOWED TO AN ERRATIC DRIFT ON THE 3RD THAT CONTINUED INTO THE 4TH. UNFAVORABLE UPPER LEVEL WINDS CAUSED BARRY TO WEAKEN TO A DEPRESSION EARLY ON THE 4TH...WITH THE CYCLONE REGAINING TROPICAL STORM STRENGTH LATER THAT DAY. BARRY MOVED NORTH AND INTENSIFIED ON THE 5TH...MAKING LANDFALL AT JUST UNDER HURRICANE STRENGTH IN THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE BETWEEN PANAMA CITY AND DESTIN EARLY ON THE 6TH. THE CYCLONE TURNED NORTHWEST AND WEAKENED TO A DEPRESSION OVER SOUTHWESTERN ALABAMA...THEN WEAKENED FURTHER TO A LOW OVER NORTHERN MISSISSIPPI. THE REMNANTS OF BARRY WERE LAST SEEN OVER SOUTHEASTERN MISSOURI ON THE 8TH. WINDS AND RAINS ASSOCIATED WITH BARRY CAUSED MINOR DAMAGE IN THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE. CHANTAL ORIGINATED FROM A TROPICAL WAVE...FIRST BECOMING A DEPRESSION ON 14 AUGUST ABOUT 1500 MILES EAST OF THE SOUTHERN WINDWARD ISLANDS. THE DEPRESSION MOVED WESTWARD SO RAPIDLY THAT IT WAS UNABLE TO MAINTAIN A CLOSED SURFACE CIRCULATION AND DEGENERATED INTO AN OPEN WAVE ON THE 16TH. IT MOVED THROUGH THE LESSER ANTILLES AS A WAVE BUT DID PRODUCE WINDS OF TROPICAL STORM FORCE AT MARTINIQUE. THE WAVE SLOWED DOWN IN THE EASTERN CARIBBEAN...AND WHEN A CIRCULATION REDEVELOPED ON THE 17TH THE SYSTEM BECAME A TROPICAL STORM. CHANTAL MOVED WESTWARD THROUGH THE CARIBBEAN... BRIEFLY REACHING AN INTENSITY OF 70 MPH ON THE 19TH WHEN IT WAS SOUTH OF JAMAICA. CHANTAL WEAKENED LATE ON THE 19TH...BUT BEGAN TO STRENGTHEN AGAIN AS IT APPROACHED BELIZE AND THE YUCATAN PENINSULA. CHANTAL MADE LANDFALL NEAR THE BELIZE-MEXICO BORDER LATE ON THE 20TH WITH WINDS OF 70 MPH. CHANTAL WEAKENED TO A DEPRESSION AND THEN DISSIPATED OVER SOUTHEASTERN MEXICO ON THE 22ND. THERE WERE NO CASUALTIES ASSOCIATED WITH CHANTAL WHILE IT WAS A TROPICAL CYCLONE...ALTHOUGH TWO DEATHS WERE REPORTED IN TRINIDAD FROM LIGHTNING ASSOCIATED WITH THE PASSAGE OF THE TROPICAL WAVE THROUGH THE LESSER ANTILLES. DAMAGE IN BELIZE IS ESTIMATED AT $10-15 MILLION. THERE WERE NO REPORTS OF SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE IN MEXICO. DEAN FORMED FROM A TROPICAL WAVE OVER THE VIRGIN ISLANDS ON 22 AUGUST...AND A HURRICANE HUNTER PLANE INDICATED THAT ITS WINDS WERE NEAR HURRICANE FORCE LATER THAT DAY. HOWEVER...THE SYSTEM SOON ENCOUNTERED AN UNFAVORABLE ENVIRONMENT AND IT WEAKENED TO A TROPICAL WAVE JUST NORTH OF PUERTO RICO THE NEXT DAY. DEANS REMNANTS MOVED MOSTLY NORTHWARD FOR THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS...AND INTERACTED WITH A LARGE NON-TROPICAL TROUGH OFF THE U.S. EAST COAST. ON THE 26TH...THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY BEGAN TO ORGANIZE NEAR THE REMNANT LOW PRESSURE INDICATING THAT IS WAS AGAIN ACQUIRING TROPICAL CHARACTERISTICS. DEAN RE-ATTAINED TROPICAL STORM STATUS LATE ON THE 26TH WHILE LOCATED ABOUT 400 MILES NORTH-NORTHEAST OF BERMUDA. AFTER STRENGTHENING TO JUST BELOW HURRICANE FORCE...DEAN CONTINUED NORTHEASTWARD AND BECAME EXTRATROPICAL THE FOLLOWING DAY. WINDS TO TROPICAL FORCE WERE REPORTED IN THE U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS...AND THERE WAS DAMAGE DUE TO FLOODING IN PUERTO RICO. SUMMARY TABLE... NAME DATES WIND-MPH DEATHS US DAMAGE ($MIL) ------------------------------------------------------------------- T.S. BARRY 2 - 6 AUG 70 0 30 T.S. CHANTAL 14 - 22 AUG 70 0 0 T.S. DEAN 22 - 28 AUG 70 0 2 ------------------------------------------------------------------- AVILA/BEVEN/FRANKLIN/PASCH