2003 Atlantic Hurricane Season - Impact and Records

Impact and Records

No cyclones in the season had a significant impact on South America or Central America. However, a total of eight tropical cyclones made landfall on Mexico from either the Atlantic or the Pacific Ocean, which was the greatest total since the record of nine in 1971. A total of seven deaths occurred in Mexico from Atlantic hurricanes. Much of the Caribbean did not receive significant impact from tropical cyclones during the season. However, Tropical Storm Odette caused eight direct deaths, as well as two indirect deaths, when it crossed the Dominican Republic in December. The storm damaged or destroyed over 1,000 homes, and heavy damage was reported to the banana crop.

Six tropical cyclones made landfall along the coast of the United States during the season, including two hurricanes. The first, Claudette, caused locally heavy damage in southeastern Texas in July; two deaths were reported in the state, while earlier in its duration it caused an indirect death from rough waves in Florida. In September, Hurricane Isabel caused deaths and damage from North Carolina through southern Canada. The worst damage from the hurricane occurred in Virginia, where it was the costliest disaster in the history of the state; there, damage totaled $1.85 billion (2003 USD, $2.34 billion 2012 USD), and there were 32 fatalities, ten of which were caused directly by the hurricane. Hurricane Isabel caused deaths in seven states and one Canadian province, and about 6 million people were left without power as a result of the storm.

Several cyclones impacted Bermuda during the season, most significantly Hurricane Fabian. On the island, its passage proved to be the costliest and resulted in the first death since a hurricane in 1926. The hurricane killed four on the island when its strong waves and storm surge washed two cars off the causeway between St. George's Parish and St. David's Island. Damage from the hurricane totaled $300 million (2003 USD, $379 million 2012 USD). Elsewhere, Hurricane Juan was considered among the most damaging in the history of Halifax, Nova Scotia, where strong winds downed thousands of trees and left low-lying areas flooded from a record storm surge to the city. The hurricane caused a total of eight deaths and damage estimated at $200 million (2003 CAD, $150 million 2003 USD, $190 million 2012 USD).

The season is one of only four with a storm before and after the official bounds of the season; the others are 1887, 1953, and 2007. When Tropical Storm Peter formed on December 7, the season became the second on record with two December storms. The 235 days between the development of the first storm, Tropical Storm Ana, and the dissipation of the last storm, Peter, made the 2003 season the longest season since 1952. The season was the eighth most active on record, behind the 2005, 1933, 2011, 2010, 1995, 1887, 1969, and 2012 seasons, and tied with the 1936 and 2008 seasons.