Hurricane Belle (1976)
Hurricane Belle reached Category 3 in the North Atlantic between August 6, 1976 and August 10, 1976, with a lowest pressure of 957 mb, and made landfall.
Radar
Reflectivity now over Hurricane Belle. Open it to see storms, cones and warnings on the map.
Radar mosaic and map layers from NOAA MRMS. Boundaries from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet.
The storm
- Basin
- North Atlantic
- Dates
- August 6, 1976 to August 10, 1976
- Peak strength
- Category 3, 105 kt (121 mph)
- Lowest pressure
- 957 mb (28.26 inHg)
- Landfall
- Yes
- Accumulated cyclone energy
- 9.5
- Fastest the center moved
- 23 kt (26 mph)
- Identifier
- AL071976
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.
Rainfall
The Weather Prediction Center attributes 1,241 rain gauge totals over the contiguous United States to this storm. The wettest reached 6.80 inches (173 mm).
| Station | Total | Position |
|---|---|---|
| ROCHESTER | 6.80 in (173 mm) | 41.78N 70.92W |
| ASSATEAGUE | 6.68 in (170 mm) | 38.07N 75.20W |
| BODIE ISLAND | 5.97 in (152 mm) | 35.83N 75.55W |
| BRUNSWICK NAS | 5.85 in (149 mm) | 43.90N 69.93W |
| BRUNSWICK NAS | 5.85 in (149 mm) | 43.88N 69.93W |
| WINDHAM 3 E | 5.77 in (147 mm) | 42.30N 74.20W |
| SNOW HILL 4 N | 5.75 in (146 mm) | 38.23N 75.37W |
| NORWALK GAS PLANT | 5.72 in (145 mm) | 41.12N 73.42W |
| SANDY HOOK | 5.66 in (144 mm) | 40.45N 74.00W |
| SHEPAUG DAM | 5.37 in (136 mm) | 41.72N 73.30W |
| WALLOPS STN MAIN BASE | 5.30 in (135 mm) | 37.93N 75.47W |
| WALLOPS ISLAND FLIGHT FAC | 5.30 in (135 mm) | 37.93N 75.45W |
WPC’s storm rainfall file, 1900 to 2020, compiled by David Roth.
Track
| Time (UTC) | Position | Wind | Pressure | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 6, 06:00 | 26.0N 72.8W | 25 kt | 1012 mb | Tropical depression |
| Aug 6, 12:00 | 26.3N 73.0W | 25 kt | 1012 mb | Tropical depression |
| Aug 6, 18:00 | 26.0N 73.4W | 30 kt | 1009 mb | Tropical depression |
| Aug 7, 00:00 | 25.6N 73.2W | 40 kt | 1005 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 7, 06:00 | 26.0N 73.2W | 45 kt | 1000 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 7, 12:00 | 26.2N 73.7W | 55 kt | 993 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 7, 18:00 | 26.6N 74.2W | 70 kt | 985 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 8, 00:00 | 26.9N 74.6W | 80 kt | 972 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 8, 06:00 | 27.4N 75.1W | 90 kt | 962 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 8, 12:00 | 28.1N 75.1W | 95 kt | 959 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 8, 18:00 | 29.5N 75.3W | 100 kt | 958 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 9, 00:00 | 30.9N 75.3W | 105 kt | 957 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 9, 06:00 | 32.5N 75.2W | 105 kt | 959 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 9, 12:00 | 34.4N 74.7W | 95 kt | 963 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 9, 18:00 | 36.6N 74.2W | 90 kt | 970 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 10, 00:00 | 38.8N 73.8W | 80 kt | 977 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 10, 06:00 | 41.0N 73.2W | 60 kt | 983 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 10, 12:00 | 42.6N 72.4W | 35 kt | 992 mb | Tropical storm |
Other North Atlantic storms of 1976
- Unnamed tropical stormNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Tropical Storm AnnaNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Tropical Storm DottieNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Hurricane CandiceNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Hurricane EmmyNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Hurricane FrancesNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Unnamed tropical stormNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Hurricane GloriaNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1976
- Hurricane HollyNorth Atlantic · 1976
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.