Hurricane Chantal (1989)
Hurricane Chantal reached Category 1 in the North Atlantic between July 30, 1989 and August 3, 1989, with a lowest pressure of 984 mb, and made landfall.
Track and intensity
The whole track of Hurricane Chantal, colored by strength, with the other storms of the 1989 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
- July 30, 1989 to August 3, 1989
- Peak strength
- Category 1, 70 kt (81 mph)
- Lowest pressure
- 984 mb (29.06 inHg)
- Landfall
- Yes
- Accumulated cyclone energy
- 2.5
- Fastest the center moved
- 13 kt (15 mph)
- Identifier
- AL041989
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 1, 13:00 | Stowell, TX, 21 km away | 29.6N 94.4W | 70 kt (81 mph) | 986 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 1,810 rain gauge totals over the contiguous United States to this storm. The wettest reached 20.00 inches (508 mm).
| Station | Total | Position |
|---|---|---|
| Friendswood | 20.00 in (508 mm) | 29.51N 95.19W |
| Clear Lake | 16.00 in (406 mm) | 29.55N 95.02W |
| THOMPSONS 3 WSW | 9.56 in (243 mm) | 29.48N 95.63W |
| HOUSTON WILLIAM P HOBBY AP | 8.66 in (220 mm) | 29.63N 95.28W |
| SUGAR LAND | 8.60 in (218 mm) | 29.62N 95.63W |
| HOUSTON MISSOURI CITY | 8.30 in (211 mm) | 29.67N 95.47W |
| ALVIN | 8.29 in (211 mm) | 29.37N 95.23W |
| Richmond | 7.03 in (179 mm) | 29.58N 95.75W |
| GALVESTON | 6.56 in (167 mm) | 29.30N 94.80W |
| FULTON DAM 13 | 5.75 in (146 mm) | 41.90N 90.15W |
| KENT CITY 2 SW | 5.37 in (136 mm) | 43.20N 85.77W |
| BELLVILLE | 5.28 in (134 mm) | 30.03N 96.22W |
WPC’s storm rainfall file, 1900 to 2020, compiled by David Roth.
Track
| Time (UTC) | Position | Wind | Pressure | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 30, 12:00 | 22.5N 90.0W | 20 kt | 1011 mb | Tropical depression |
| Jul 30, 18:00 | 23.5N 90.2W | 25 kt | 1010 mb | Tropical depression |
| Jul 31, 00:00 | 24.4N 90.5W | 30 kt | 1009 mb | Tropical depression |
| Jul 31, 06:00 | 25.4N 91.0W | 35 kt | 1004 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jul 31, 12:00 | 26.2N 91.7W | 50 kt | 995 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jul 31, 18:00 | 27.1N 92.2W | 55 kt | 993 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 1, 00:00 | 27.9N 92.8W | 65 kt | 991 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 1, 06:00 | 28.7N 93.5W | 70 kt | 987 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 1, 12:00 | 29.5N 94.3W | 70 kt | 984 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 1, 13:00 landfall | 29.6N 94.4W | 70 kt | 986 mb | Hurricane |
| Aug 1, 18:00 | 30.2N 95.2W | 50 kt | 993 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 2, 00:00 | 30.8N 96.1W | 35 kt | 1000 mb | Tropical storm |
| Aug 2, 06:00 | 31.5N 96.9W | 25 kt | 1004 mb | Tropical depression |
| Aug 2, 12:00 | 32.3N 97.5W | 20 kt | 1007 mb | Tropical depression |
| Aug 2, 18:00 | 33.3N 98.0W | 20 kt | 1008 mb | Tropical depression |
| Aug 3, 00:00 | 34.5N 98.5W | 20 kt | 1009 mb | Tropical depression |
Other North Atlantic storms of 1989
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1989
- Tropical Storm AllisonNorth Atlantic · 1989
- Tropical Storm BarryNorth Atlantic · 1989
- Hurricane DeanNorth Atlantic · 1989
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1989
- Hurricane ErinNorth Atlantic · 1989
- Hurricane FelixNorth Atlantic · 1989
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1989
- Hurricane GabrielleNorth Atlantic · 1989
- Hurricane HugoNorth Atlantic · 1989
- Tropical Storm IrisNorth Atlantic · 1989
- Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 1989
- Hurricane JerryNorth Atlantic · 1989
- Tropical Storm KarenNorth Atlantic · 1989
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.