Hurricane Alicia (1983)
Hurricane Alicia reached Category 3 in the North Atlantic between August 15, 1983 and August 21, 1983, with a lowest pressure of 962 mb, and made landfall.
Track and intensity
The whole track of Hurricane Alicia, colored by strength, with the other storms of the 1983 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
- August 15, 1983 to August 21, 1983
- Peak strength
- Category 3, 100 kt (115 mph)
- Lowest pressure
- 962 mb (28.41 inHg)
- Landfall
- Yes
- Accumulated cyclone energy
- 6.4
- Fastest the center moved
- 14 kt (16 mph)
- Identifier
- AL031983
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 18, 07:00 | Jamaica Beach, TX, 15 km away | 29.1N 95.1W | 100 kt (115 mph) | 962 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 1,476 rain gauge totals over the contiguous United States to this storm. The wettest reached 9.50 inches (241 mm).
| Station | Total | Position |
|---|---|---|
| LIBERTY | 9.50 in (241 mm) | 30.07N 94.80W |
| MEXIA | 9.38 in (238 mm) | 31.68N 96.48W |
| FREEPORT 2 NW | 7.85 in (199 mm) | 28.98N 95.38W |
| GALVESTON | 7.76 in (197 mm) | 29.30N 94.80W |
| HOUSTON SAN JACINTO DAM | 7.74 in (197 mm) | 29.92N 95.15W |
| HOUSTON NORTH HOUSTON | 7.64 in (194 mm) | 29.87N 95.53W |
| HUMBLE | 7.55 in (192 mm) | 30.00N 95.25W |
| THOMPSONS 3 WSW | 7.47 in (190 mm) | 29.48N 95.63W |
| CENTERVILLE | 7.31 in (186 mm) | 31.25N 95.97W |
| ROMAYOR 1 WSW | 6.98 in (177 mm) | 30.43N 94.85W |
| HOUSTON HEIGHTS | 6.87 in (174 mm) | 29.78N 95.43W |
| BAYTOWN | 6.71 in (170 mm) | 29.80N 95.05W |
WPC’s storm rainfall file, 1900 to 2020, compiled by David Roth.
Track
| Time (UTC) | Position | Wind | Pressure | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 15, 12:00 | 27.3N 90.5W | 30 kt | 1009 mb | Tropical depression |
| Aug 15, 18:00 | 27.2N 91.0W | 40 kt | 1006 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 16, 00:00 | 27.1N 91.5W | 45 kt | 1005 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 16, 06:00 | 27.0N 92.0W | 50 kt | 1004 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 16, 12:00 | 27.1N 92.4W | 55 kt | 1002 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 16, 18:00 | 27.3N 92.8W | 60 kt | 998 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 17, 00:00 | 27.4N 93.3W | 65 kt | 991 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 17, 06:00 | 27.7N 93.7W | 70 kt | 987 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 17, 12:00 | 27.9N 94.2W | 75 kt | 983 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 17, 18:00 | 28.1N 94.5W | 90 kt | 974 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 18, 00:00 | 28.4N 94.8W | 95 kt | 969 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 18, 06:00 | 28.9N 95.0W | 100 kt | 963 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 18, 07:00 landfall | 29.1N 95.1W | 100 kt | 962 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 18, 12:00 | 29.7N 95.5W | 80 kt | 965 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 18, 18:00 | 30.5N 96.0W | 40 kt | 990 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 19, 00:00 | 31.5N 96.7W | 35 kt | 998 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 19, 06:00 | 32.4N 97.4W | 30 kt | 1003 mb | Tropical depression |
| Aug 19, 12:00 | 33.3N 98.0W | 25 kt | 1006 mb | Tropical depression |
| Aug 19, 18:00 | 34.4N 98.5W | 25 kt | 1009 mb | Tropical depression |
| Aug 20, 00:00 | 35.4N 99.0W | 20 kt | 1010 mb | Tropical depression |
| Aug 20, 06:00 | 36.5N 99.4W | 20 kt | 1011 mb | Extratropical |
| Aug 20, 12:00 | 37.6N 99.2W | 20 kt | 1011 mb | Extratropical |
| Aug 20, 18:00 | 38.9N 99.0W | 20 kt | 1011 mb | Extratropical |
| Aug 21, 00:00 | 40.0N 98.0W | 20 kt | 1010 mb | Extratropical |
| Aug 21, 06:00 | 41.2N 97.0W | 20 kt | 1010 mb | Extratropical |
Other North Atlantic storms of 1983
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.