Hurricane Gustav (2002)

Basin

North Atlantic

Dates

September 8, 2002 to September 15, 2002

Peak strength

Category 2, 85 kt (98 mph)

Lowest pressure

960 mb (28.35 inHg)

Landfall

Yes

Accumulated cyclone energy

3.6

Tropical-storm-force wind reached

250 nmi (463 km, 288 mi) from the center at its widest

Eyewall radius at its peak

60 nmi (111 km, 69 mi)

Overall size

300 nmi (556 km, 345 mi) to the outermost closed isobar

Fastest the center moved

46 kt (53 mph)

Identifier

AL082002

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

6 (6 direct, 0 indirect)

Injuries

22

Property damage

$409,000

Crop damage

none recorded

Events recorded

82 in 10 reports from 9 states and marine areas

State by state

What was recorded

79 high wind, 3 tropical storm.

The Weather Prediction Center attributes 66 rain gauge totals over the contiguous United States to this storm. The wettest reached 6.00 inches (152 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.

Tropical Storm Gustav passed just offshore of the Outer Banks of North Carolina on September 10th. Winds up to 78 mph were reported by the Coastal Guard at Cape Hatteras, 74mph were recorded at Ocracoke and 60 mph were recorded at Cedar Island. Storm surge of 4 feet occurred at Cedar Island where Ocracoke and Hatteras Village experienced a surge of 5 to 6 feet with the strong northwest winds. Portions of Highway 12 from Rodanthe south to Ocracoke were over washed by 10 to 15 foot ocean swells. Minor flooding damage was reported in several businesses in and around Ocracoke and Hatteras Village.

Eastern Hyde, North Carolina · Tropical Storm · Sep 10, 10:00 UTC

Tropical Storm Gustav passed just offshore of the Outer Banks of North Carolina on September 10th. Winds up to 78 mph were reported by the Coastal Guard at Cape Hatteras, 74mph were recorded at Ocracoke and 60 mph were recorded at Cedar Island. Storm surge of 4 feet occurred at Cedar Island where Ocracoke and Hatteras Village experienced a surge of 5 to 6 feet with the strong northwest winds. Portions of Highway 12 from Rodanthe south to Ocracoke were over washed by 10 to 15 foot ocean swells. Minor flooding damage was reported in several businesses in and around Ocracoke and Hatteras Village.

Carteret, North Carolina · Tropical Storm · Sep 10, 10:00 UTC

• Tropical Storm ArthurNorth Atlantic · 2002Tropical Storm50 kt · 992 mb
• Tropical Storm BerthaNorth Atlantic · 2002Tropical Storm35 kt · 1007 mb
• Tropical Storm CristobalNorth Atlantic · 2002Tropical Storm45 kt · 999 mb
• Tropical Storm DollyNorth Atlantic · 2002Tropical Storm50 kt · 997 mb
• Tropical Storm EdouardNorth Atlantic · 2002Tropical Storm55 kt · 1002 mb
• Tropical Storm FayNorth Atlantic · 2002Tropical Storm50 kt · 998 mb
• Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 2002Tropical Depression30 kt · 1013 mb
• Tropical Storm HannaNorth Atlantic · 2002Tropical Storm50 kt · 1001 mb
• Hurricane IsidoreNorth Atlantic · 2002Cat 3110 kt · 934 mb
• Tropical Storm JosephineNorth Atlantic · 2002Tropical Storm50 kt · 1004 mb
• Hurricane KyleNorth Atlantic · 2002Cat 175 kt · 980 mb
• Hurricane LiliNorth Atlantic · 2002Cat 4125 kt · 938 mb
• Unnamed tropical depressionNorth Atlantic · 2002Tropical Depression30 kt · 1002 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
• Every advisory and discussion NHC issued while it was live
• Wikipedia article: Hurricane Gustav