000 ABNT30 KNHC 011224 TWSAT MONTHLY TROPICAL WEATHER SUMMARY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL 800 AM EDT MON OCT 1 2001 SUMMARY OF TROPICAL CYCLONE ACTIVITY FOR SEPTEMBER 2001... FOR THE NORTH ATLANTIC...CARIBBEAN SEA AND THE GULF OF MEXICO... SEPTEMBER 2001 WAS A FAIRLY ACTIVE MONTH FOR TROPICAL CYCLONES. FOUR NAMED STORMS FORMED...AND ALL OF THEM BECAME HURRICANES. HOWEVER...NONE OF THESE SYSTEMS REACHED HURRICANE STRENGTH OVER THE DEEP TROPICS...SOUTH OF 23N LATITUDE. IN ADDITION...THERE WAS ONE TROPICAL DEPRESSION. ERIN FORMED ON THE 1ST...OVER THE EASTERN TROPICAL ATLANTIC FROM A STRONG TROPICAL WAVE THAT MOVED OFF THE WEST COAST OF AFRICA ON 30 AUGUST. THE SYSTEM SOON BECAME A TROPICAL STORM...ABOUT 670 MILES WEST-SOUTHWEST OF THE CAPE VERDE ISLANDS. OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS...ERIN MOVED WEST-NORTHWESTWARD. IT STRENGTHENED TO 60 MPH ON THE 3RD...BUT SOON SUCCUMBED TO WESTERLY SHEAR. THE WEAKENING CYCLONE MOVED TO ABOUT 280 MILES EAST-NORTHEAST OF THE NORTHERN LEEWARD ISLANDS ON THE 5TH...WHERE IT DISSIPATED. HOWEVER...A NEW CENTER DEVELOPED THE FOLLOWING DAY ABOUT 475 MILES NORTH-NORTHEAST OF THE NORTHERN LEEWARD ISLANDS...WITHIN THE SAME AREA OF DISTURBED WEATHER THAT WAS ASSOCIATED WITH ERIN. THE RE-BORN TROPICAL CYCLONE STRENGTHENED INTO A TROPICAL STORM ABOUT 635 MILES SOUTHEAST OF BERMUDA. MOVING NORTH-NORTHWEST...ERIN BECAME A HURRICANE ON THE 8TH. THE SYSTEM PASSED ABOUT 100 MILES EAST OF BERMUDA ON THE 9TH. A LITTLE LATER THAT SAME DAY...IT STRENGTHENED TO ITS PEAK INTENSITY OF 120 MPH...THE FIRST MAJOR HURRICANE OF THE SEASON. ERIN ACCELERATED NORTHEASTWARD...AND PASSED VERY NEAR CAPE RACE NEWFOUNDLAND ON THE 14TH. IT BECAME EXTRATROPICAL SHORTLY THEREAFTER. FELIX DEVELOPED ON THE 6TH ABOUT 400 MILES SOUTHWEST OF THE CAPE VERDE ISLANDS AND MOVED WESTWARD FOR THE NEXT 2 DAYS. LATE ON THE 8TH...THE DEPRESSION ENCOUNTERED STRONG UPPER-LEVEL VERTICAL WIND SHEAR AND WEAKENED BACK TO A TROPICAL WAVE. WHILE CONTINUING ON A WESTWARD TRACK...THE VERTICAL SHEAR RELAXED ENOUGH TO ALLOW DEEP CONVECTION AND A NEW CENTER TO RE-DEVELOP EARLY ON THE 10TH ABOUT 1000 MILES EAST OF THE LESSER ANTILLES. THE DEPRESSION TRACKED STEADILY WEST-NORTHWESTWARD OVER THE OPEN TROPICAL ATLANTIC AND SLOWLY STRENGTHENED INTO TROPICAL STORM FELIX ON THE 11TH. DURING THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS...FELIX TURNED TO THE NORTHWEST AND THEN NORTH. LATE ON THE 12TH...IT INTENSIFIED INTO THE SECOND HURRICANE OF THE SEASON ABOUT 1500 MILES SOUTHWEST OF THE AZORES ISLANDS. WHILE RECURVING TO THE NORTHEAST LATE ON THE 13TH...FELIX STRENGTHENED INTO THE THE SECOND MAJOR HURRICANE OF THE SEASON ABOUT 1400 MILES SOUTHWEST OF THE AZORES. A PEAK INTENSITY OF 115 MPH WAS MAINTAINED UNTIL EARLY ON THE 14TH...AFTER WHICH SLOW WEAKENING OCCURRED. FELIX GRADUALLY TURNED EASTWARD ON THE 15TH AND CONTINUED THIS MOTION UNTIL IT WEAKENED BACK TO A TROPICAL STORM ON THE 17TH ...WHEN IT STALLED ABOUT 350 MILES SOUTHWEST OF THE AZORES. INCREASING UPPER-LEVEL SHEAR AND COLD UPWELLING CAUSED FELIX TO WEAKEN AS IT DRIFTED SLOWLY SOUTHWARD. IT WEAKENED TO A DEPRESSION EARLY ON THE 18TH AND DISSIPATED LATER THAT DAY ABOUT 400 MILES SOUTHWEST OF THE AZORES ISLANDS. GABRIELLE FORMED OVER THE SOUTHEASTERN GULF OF MEXICO ON THE 11TH. AFTER LOOPING SLOWLY FOR A FEW DAYS...IT MOVED INLAND ACROSS THE WEST COAST OF CENTRAL FLORIDA ON THE 14TH AS A 70-MPH TROPICAL STORM. OVER 10 INCHES OF RAIN CAUSED MAJOR RIVER FLOODING IN WEST-CENTRAL FLORIDA AND THERE WAS COASTAL STORM SURGE FLOODING ALONG THE CENTRAL FLORIDA WEST COAST OF UP TO 5 FEET ABOVE NORMAL. STRONG WINDS ACROSS CENTRAL FLORIDA CAUSED DAMAGE TO ROOFS...MOBILE HOMES...AND TREES. GABRIELLE THEN MOVED NORTHEASTWARD OVER THE WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN AND STRENGTHENED TO AN 80-MPH HURRICANE ON THE 18TH WHILE LOCATED ABOUT 250 MILES NORTH OF BERMUDA. IT BECAME AN EXTRATROPICAL STORM ON THE 19TH AND CAUSED UP TO 6 INCHES OF RAIN ON THE AVALON PENINSULA OF NEWFOUNDLAND. TWO DROWNING DEATHS ARE ATTRIBUTED TO GABRIELLE. TROPICAL DEPRESSION NINE FORMED OVER THE SOUTHWESTERN CARIBBEAN SEA ON THE 19TH. IT MOVED INLAND OVER NORTHEASTERN NICARAGUA ALMOST IMMEDIATELY AND DISSIPATED OVER LAND EARLY THE NEXT DAY. THE TROPICAL WAVE ASSOCIATED WITH THE DEPRESSION CONTINUED WESTWARD INTO THE EASTERN PACIFIC AND CONTRIBUTED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF HURRICANE JULIETTE. HUMBERTO FORMED ON THE 21ST ABOUT 470 MILES NORTH-NORTHEAST OF SAN JUAN PUERTO RICO. IT MOVED NORTHWESTWARD FOR ABOUT A DAY... STRENGTHENING INTO A TROPICAL STORM ON THE 22ND. HUMBERTO GRADUALLY TURNED TOWARD THE NORTH...AND WHILE PASSING ABOUT 160 MILES WEST OF BERMUDA...IT STRENGTHENED INTO A HURRICANE. THE HURRICANES WINDS SOON INCREASED TO NEAR 100 MPH. HUMBERTO TURNED TOWARD THE NORTHEAST AND WEAKENED..BUT STILL MAINTAINED HURRICANE STRENGTH FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS. THEN...REMARKABLY...THE CYCLONE RE-INTENSIFIED OVER THE NORTH ATLANTIC AND ITS WINDS REACHED A PEAK NEAR 105 MPH ON THE 26TH WHILE HUMBERTO WAS CENTERED ABOUT 200 MILES SOUTH-SOUTHEAST OF SABLE ISLAND NOVA SCOTIA. THE HURRICANE TURNED EASTWARD AND WEAKENED TO A TROPICAL STORM THE FOLLOWING DAY. IT LOST TROPICAL CHARACTERISTICS ON THE 27TH AND THE REMNANT CIRCULATION WAS EVENTUALLY ABSORBED BY A LARGE EXTRATROPICAL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER THE FAR NORTH ATLANTIC. SUMMARY TABLE... NAME DATES WIND-MPH DEATHS US DAMAGE ($MIL) ------------------------------------------------------------------- HUR. ERIN 1-14 SEP 120 0 0 HUR. FELIX 6-18 SEP 115 0 0 HUR. GABRIELLE 11-18 SEP 80 2 PENDING T.D. NINE 19-20 SEP 35 0 0 HUR. HUMBERTO 21-27 SEP 105 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------- AVILA/BEVEN/FRANKLIN/LAWRENCE/PASCH/STEWART