Hurricane Bertha (1996)

Basin

North Atlantic

Dates

July 5, 1996 to July 17, 1996

Peak strength

Category 3, 100 kt (115 mph)

Lowest pressure

960 mb (28.35 inHg)

Landfall

Yes

Accumulated cyclone energy

17.4

Fastest the center moved

38 kt (44 mph)

Identifier

AL021996

Radar at KLTX as it neared land, Jul 12, 20:00 UTC

The sources count different things and are not added together.

Landfall points the US agencies flagged in the best track. The nearest town is named from the site’s gazetteer, not from the report.

NOAA’s Storm Events database, the record National Weather Service offices compile months after a storm, as compiled March 2026.

Deaths

5 (5 direct, 0 indirect)

Injuries

24

Property damage

$142 million

Crop damage

$143 million

Events recorded

158 in 46 reports from 16 states and marine areas

State by state

What was recorded

70 hurricane (typhoon), 26 heavy rain, 23 flash flood, 12 tropical storm, 9 high wind, 9 flood, 4 tornado, 2 thunderstorm wind, 1 rip current, 1 strong wind, 1 coastal flood.

4 tornadoes recorded in the United States, strongest first.

The Weather Prediction Center attributes 943 rain gauge totals over the contiguous United States to this storm. The wettest reached 9.60 inches (244 mm).

WPC’s storm rainfall file, 1900 to 2020, compiled by David Roth.

The strongest winds National Weather Service offices recorded with this storm. An estimated figure is a forecaster’s judgment from the damage, not an instrument reading.

• Tropical Storm ArthurNorth Atlantic · 1996Tropical Storm45 kt · 992 mb
• Hurricane CesarNorth Atlantic · 1996Cat 175 kt · 985 mb
• Hurricane DollyNorth Atlantic · 1996Cat 170 kt · 989 mb
• Hurricane EdouardNorth Atlantic · 1996Cat 4125 kt · 933 mb
• Hurricane FranNorth Atlantic · 1996Cat 3105 kt · 946 mb
• Tropical Storm GustavNorth Atlantic · 1996Tropical Storm40 kt · 1005 mb
• Hurricane HortenseNorth Atlantic · 1996Cat 4120 kt · 935 mb
• Hurricane IsidoreNorth Atlantic · 1996Cat 3100 kt · 960 mb
• Tropical Storm JosephineNorth Atlantic · 1996Tropical Storm60 kt · 970 mb
• Tropical Storm KyleNorth Atlantic · 1996Tropical Storm45 kt · 1001 mb
• Hurricane LiliNorth Atlantic · 1996 · 22 deaths · $662 millionCat 3100 kt · 960 mb
• Hurricane MarcoNorth Atlantic · 1996Cat 165 kt · 983 mb

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.

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.

• Tropical cyclone report, National Hurricane Center
• Wikipedia article: Hurricane Bertha