Hurricane Ione (1955)
Hurricane Ione reached Category 4 in the North Atlantic between September 10, 1955 and September 27, 1955, with a lowest pressure of 938 mb, and made landfall.
Track and intensity
The whole track of Hurricane Ione, colored by strength, with the other storms of the 1955 season in the same basin behind it, and its wind and pressure hour by hour. Every fix is in the track table below.
The storm
- Basin
- North Atlantic
- Dates
- September 10, 1955 to September 27, 1955
- Peak strength
- Category 4, 120 kt (138 mph)
- Lowest pressure
- 938 mb (27.70 inHg)
- Landfall
- Yes
- Accumulated cyclone energy
- 21.7
- Fastest the center moved
- 50 kt (58 mph)
- Identifier
- AL081955
Deaths and damage
No source this site reads publishes a machine-readable casualty or damage figure for a storm of this era. The National Hurricane Center’s season tables begin in 1995 and carry deaths and damage only from 2005 in the Atlantic and 2020 in both basins; the US Storm Events record begins in 1996.
Landfall
| Time (UTC) | Where | Position | Wind | Pressure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 19, 11:00 | Morehead City, NC, 3 km away | 34.7N 76.7W | 90 kt (104 mph) | 955 mb |
Landfall points the US agencies flagged in the best track. The nearest town is named from the site’s gazetteer, not from the report.
Rainfall
The Weather Prediction Center attributes 620 rain gauge totals over the contiguous United States to this storm. The wettest reached 16.63 inches (422 mm).
| Station | Total | Position |
|---|---|---|
| MAYSVILLE 6 SW | 16.63 in (422 mm) | 34.83N 77.30W |
| NEW BERN CRAVEN CO REGL AP | 13.02 in (331 mm) | 35.07N 77.05W |
| NEW BERN 3 NW | 12.86 in (327 mm) | 35.13N 77.08W |
| MOREHEAD CITY 2 WNW | 10.90 in (277 mm) | 34.73N 76.73W |
| BELHAVEN 5 SW | 8.93 in (227 mm) | 35.50N 76.68W |
| BATH 2 WSW | 8.87 in (225 mm) | 35.45N 76.83W |
| SOUTHPORT 5 N | 8.38 in (213 mm) | 34.00N 78.02W |
| WILMINGTON INTL AP | 8.36 in (212 mm) | 34.27N 77.90W |
| WILMINGTON 7 N | 8.32 in (211 mm) | 34.32N 77.92W |
| CHERRY POINT MCAS | 7.88 in (200 mm) | 34.90N 76.88W |
| WASHINGTON WWTP 4W | 7.79 in (198 mm) | 35.53N 77.02W |
| NEW HOLLAND | 7.73 in (196 mm) | 35.45N 76.22W |
WPC’s storm rainfall file, 1900 to 2020, compiled by David Roth.
Track
| Time (UTC) | Position | Wind | Pressure | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 10, 06:00 | 13.6N 41.4W | 25 kt | Tropical depression | |
| Sep 10, 12:00 | 14.0N 43.0W | 35 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 10, 18:00 | 14.4N 44.6W | 35 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 11, 00:00 | 14.8N 46.2W | 35 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 11, 06:00 | 15.1N 47.8W | 35 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 11, 12:00 | 15.2N 49.3W | 35 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 11, 18:00 | 14.9N 50.8W | 35 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 12, 00:00 | 14.6N 52.1W | 35 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 12, 06:00 | 14.3N 53.4W | 35 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 12, 12:00 | 14.0N 54.6W | 35 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 12, 18:00 | 14.0N 55.8W | 35 kt | 1007 mb | Tropical storm |
| Sep 13, 00:00 | 14.4N 56.9W | 35 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 13, 06:00 | 14.9N 58.0W | 35 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 13, 12:00 | 15.5N 58.8W | 35 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 13, 18:00 | 16.1N 59.3W | 40 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 14, 00:00 | 16.7N 59.7W | 45 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 14, 06:00 | 17.3N 60.1W | 45 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 14, 12:00 | 17.9N 60.6W | 50 kt | 1001 mb | Tropical storm |
| Sep 14, 18:00 | 18.5N 61.4W | 50 kt | 1000 mb | Tropical storm |
| Sep 15, 00:00 | 19.3N 62.3W | 55 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Sep 15, 06:00 | 20.6N 63.3W | 65 kt | Hurricane | |
| Sep 15, 12:00 | 21.9N 64.4W | 70 kt | 990 mb | Hurricane |
| Sep 15, 18:00 | 22.8N 65.6W | 70 kt | Hurricane | |
| Sep 16, 00:00 | 23.3N 67.0W | 75 kt | Hurricane | |
| Sep 16, 06:00 | 23.7N 68.3W | 75 kt | Hurricane | |
| Sep 16, 12:00 | 24.1N 69.3W | 75 kt | 985 mb | Hurricane |
| Sep 16, 18:00 | 24.6N 70.2W | 80 kt | Hurricane | |
| Sep 17, 00:00 | 25.1N 71.1W | 85 kt | Hurricane | |
| Sep 17, 06:00 | 25.7N 71.9W | 90 kt | 971 mb | Hurricane |
| Sep 17, 12:00 | 26.3N 72.5W | 105 kt | 950 mb | Hurricane |
| Sep 17, 18:00 | 27.0N 73.2W | 120 kt | 938 mb | Hurricane |
| Sep 18, 00:00 | 27.9N 74.0W | 120 kt | Hurricane | |
| Sep 18, 06:00 | 28.8N 74.7W | 115 kt | Hurricane | |
| Sep 18, 12:00 | 29.8N 75.3W | 110 kt | 943 mb | Hurricane |
| Sep 18, 18:00 | 31.2N 75.8W | 105 kt | Hurricane | |
| Sep 19, 00:00 | 32.6N 76.1W | 100 kt | Hurricane | |
| Sep 19, 06:00 | 33.8N 76.5W | 95 kt | Hurricane | |
| Sep 19, 11:00 landfall | 34.7N 76.7W | 90 kt | 955 mb | Hurricane |
| Sep 19, 12:00 | 34.8N 76.7W | 90 kt | 955 mb | Hurricane |
| Sep 19, 18:00 | 35.3N 76.7W | 75 kt | Hurricane | |
| Sep 20, 00:00 | 36.0N 76.4W | 65 kt | Hurricane | |
| Sep 20, 06:00 | 36.6N 75.7W | 65 kt | 976 mb | Hurricane |
| Sep 20, 12:00 | 37.1N 74.2W | 70 kt | 979 mb | Hurricane |
| Sep 20, 18:00 | 38.0N 72.0W | 75 kt | 982 mb | Hurricane |
| Sep 21, 00:00 | 39.3N 68.3W | 80 kt | 976 mb | Hurricane |
| Sep 21, 06:00 | 41.5N 64.0W | 80 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 21, 12:00 | 45.0N 59.4W | 75 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 21, 18:00 | 48.5N 55.0W | 75 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 22, 00:00 | 50.3N 54.5W | 70 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 22, 06:00 | 50.7N 54.5W | 70 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 22, 12:00 | 51.0N 53.8W | 65 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 22, 18:00 | 52.5N 51.0W | 65 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 23, 00:00 | 53.4N 46.8W | 60 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 23, 06:00 | 53.3N 43.7W | 55 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 23, 12:00 | 53.1N 40.6W | 50 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 23, 18:00 | 54.6N 35.0W | 45 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 24, 00:00 | 57.2N 29.3W | 45 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 24, 06:00 | 60.0N 22.0W | 45 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 24, 12:00 | 62.5N 15.5W | 45 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 24, 18:00 | 65.0N 14.0W | 40 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 25, 00:00 | 67.5N 11.5W | 40 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 25, 06:00 | 69.0N 9.5W | 35 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 25, 12:00 | 70.0N 8.0W | 35 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 25, 18:00 | 70.9N 7.0W | 35 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 26, 00:00 | 71.6N 7.0W | 35 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 26, 06:00 | 72.1N 9.0W | 35 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 26, 12:00 | 72.5N 12.0W | 35 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 26, 18:00 | 72.8N 14.0W | 30 kt | Extratropical | |
| Sep 27, 00:00 | 73.0N 15.0W | 30 kt | Extratropical |
Other North Atlantic storms of 1955
- Tropical Storm BrendaNorth Atlantic · 1955
- Hurricane ConnieNorth Atlantic · 1955
- Hurricane DianeNorth Atlantic · 1955
- Hurricane EdithNorth Atlantic · 1955
- Unnamed tropical stormNorth Atlantic · 1955
- Hurricane FloraNorth Atlantic · 1955
- Hurricane GladysNorth Atlantic · 1955
- Hurricane HildaNorth Atlantic · 1955
- Hurricane JanetNorth Atlantic · 1955
- Unnamed tropical stormNorth Atlantic · 1955
- Unnamed tropical stormNorth Atlantic · 1955
- Hurricane KatieNorth Atlantic · 1955
What this means
A best track is the record a warning agency settles on after the storm, not what it said at the time: position, maximum sustained wind and central pressure every six hours, revised against every observation that came in later. Category is the Saffir-Simpson scale, which runs from Category 1 at 64 kt to Category 5 at 137 kt and reads wind only, so it says nothing about surge or rain. Accumulated cyclone energy adds up the square of the wind through the storm's life, so it counts strength and duration together.
Sources
Storm history from NOAA NCEI’s International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship (IBTrACS), which merges the official best track of every warning agency. Live storms, cones, watches and warnings from the National Hurricane Center and the Central Pacific Hurricane Center. Archived radar from NOAA’s Level II archive.
The National Hurricane Center has published no tropical cyclone report for this storm.