Hurricane Earl (1998)

Basin

North Atlantic

Dates

August 31, 1998 to September 8, 1998

Peak strength

Category 2, 85 kt (98 mph)

Lowest pressure

964 mb (28.47 inHg)

Landfall

Yes

Accumulated cyclone energy

3.9

Fastest the center moved

47 kt (54 mph)

Identifier

AL051998

Radar at KEVX as it neared land, Sep 3, 06:00 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

3 (3 direct, 0 indirect)

Injuries

19

Property damage

$12 million

Crop damage

none recorded

Events recorded

132 in 26 reports from 8 states and marine areas

State by state

What was recorded

47 hurricane (typhoon), 29 tropical storm, 23 high wind, 13 tornado, 10 flash flood, 10 thunderstorm wind.

13 tornadoes recorded in the United States, strongest first.

The Weather Prediction Center attributes 740 rain gauge totals over the contiguous United States to this storm. The wettest reached 16.36 inches (416 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.

From the Storm Events narratives, unedited.

A short lived tornado, associated with an outer band of Hurricane Earl, touched down over rural semi wooded countryside, four miles west of Land O' Lakes and one mile north of State Road 54, with no apparent damage.

Pasco, Florida · Tornado · Sep 2, 19:23 UTC

A tornado, associated with an outer band of Hurricane Earl, touched down and caused minor to moderate roof and shingle damage to three single family homes, two additional homes under construction, and snapped several large branches near the intersection of County Roads 572 and 581 south of Brooksville. The tornado continued to down a few large trees and power lines across semi-wooded rural eastern Hernando county before it lifted and dissipated.

Hernando, Florida · Tornado · Sep 2, 20:06 UTC

Thirteen homes were destroyed and another thirteen were heavily damaged, most of them were mobile homes. One mobile home was flipped in the air and smashed to the ground where a 66 -year old female was crushed to death. Numerous trees were snapped off 5 to 15 feet above the ground with others uprooted. The worse of the damage was concentrated in an area approximately 2.5 to 3 miles long across Fripp Island to near Morgan Island. The tornado then crossed the St Helena Sound and moved into Colleton County.

Beaufort, South Carolina · Tornado · Sep 3, 12:28 UTC

Hurricane Earl came ashore on the Florida Gulf Coast as a tropical storm, and passed across the Carolinas during the day and evening of 9/3/98. Wind gust reports ranged as high as 70 MPH in Horry County, where sustained winds reached 50 MPH for 5 minutes. A tornado briefly touched down in Georgetown County. Rainfall reports ranged from 2 to 4 inches onto ground soaked by Hurricane Bonnie on 8/26, resulting in flooding of some roads, especially along the coast.

Georgetown, South Carolina · Tornado · Sep 3, 21:25 UTC

The remnants of Hurricane Earl, which came ashore as a Tropical Storm on the Gulf Coast of Florida, passed over southeast North Carolina during the day and evening. Onshore winds along the Brunswick County coast drove seas up the beaches, causing minor erosion, while embedded thunderstorms caused wind gusts recorded as high as 70 MPH at Long Beach, and downed trees on NC 211 near the Columbus County line. Winds were generally less than 40 MPH across the area. Rainfall accumulations in Southeast North Carolina ranged from 1.5 to 4 inches, but this rain fell on ground still draining rain from Hurricane Bonnie on 8/26, resulting in flooding of some low-lying areas.

Brunswick, North Carolina · Thunderstorm Wind · Sep 3, 23:55 UTC

The remnants of Hurricane Earl spread heavy rain across Alamance county during the early morning hours. Totals of 3 to 5 inches were common. This caused serious flooding of streams and creeks. Many rural roads were closed due to high water. Ponding of water due to poor drainage was also common in the larger communities.

Alamance, North Carolina · Flash Flood · Sep 4, 06:00 UTC

• Tropical Storm AlexNorth Atlantic · 1998Tropical Storm45 kt · 1002 mb
• Hurricane BonnieNorth Atlantic · 1998Cat 3100 kt · 954 mb
• Tropical Storm CharleyNorth Atlantic · 1998Tropical Storm60 kt · 1000 mb
• Hurricane DanielleNorth Atlantic · 1998Cat 290 kt · 960 mb
• Tropical Storm FrancesNorth Atlantic · 1998Tropical Storm55 kt · 990 mb
• Hurricane GeorgesNorth Atlantic · 1998 · 827 deathsCat 4135 kt · 937 mb
• Tropical Storm HermineNorth Atlantic · 1998Tropical Storm40 kt · 999 mb
• Hurricane IvanNorth Atlantic · 1998Cat 180 kt · 975 mb
• Hurricane JeanneNorth Atlantic · 1998Cat 290 kt · 969 mb
• Hurricane KarlNorth Atlantic · 1998Cat 290 kt · 970 mb
• Hurricane LisaNorth Atlantic · 1998Cat 165 kt · 995 mb
• Hurricane MitchNorth Atlantic · 1998 · 19,325 deathsCat 5155 kt · 905 mb
• Hurricane NicoleNorth Atlantic · 1998Cat 175 kt · 979 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 Earl