Matthew developed into a tropical storm on September 28th as it was approaching the Windward Islands. It quickly strengthened into a powerful Category 5 hurricane just two days later while just north of the northern coast of Colombia.
Every event with a place to put it; 18 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS TBW wrote it up.
Matthew developed into a tropical storm on September 28th as it was approaching the Windward Islands. It quickly strengthened into a powerful Category 5 hurricane just two days later while just north of the northern coast of Colombia. Feeling the effects of a trough to the north, Matthew turned north and decimated the nation of Haiti killing over 1000 people. After Haiti, Matthew headed towards the southeast U.S. coastline and paralleled much of the east coast of Florida and Georgia before ultimately making an official landfall near McClellanville, South Carolina on October 8th as a Category 1 hurricane with 65 knots winds (75 mph) and a central pressure of 967 mb.
Matthew's closest approach to Florida kept the center of the eye about 30 miles offshore. Locally impacts were fairly limited as the western portion of the peninsula was on the dry side of the system. Tropical storm force wind gusts were experienced across the area, mainly in gusts, but heavy rainfall and surge were non-existent. Local damage amounts from Matthew were limited to about $50,000.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Tampa Bay, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Oct 6, 8:30 AM EST, 4 hours 57 minutes earlier.
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</html>The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
18 tropical storm. Local standard time, as filed.
A mesonet station near Eagle Lake measured a tropical storm force wind gust to 38 knots.
The ASOS at Fort Myers, Page Field, measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 41 knots.
The ASOS at Sarasota / Bradenton Airport measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 35 knots.
A WeatherFlow station near Sarasota measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 37 knots.
A WeatherFlow station near the Sunshine Skyway Bridge measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 34 knots.
A WeatherFlow station near Boca Grande measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 36 knots.
A mesonet station near Frostproof measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 37 knots.
A NOS buoy near Clearwater Beach recorded a wind gust of 35 knots.
A home weather station near Belleair measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 39 knots.
A mesonet station near Dundee measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 37 knots.
A WeatherFlow station near Egmont Key measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 36 knots.
A mesonet station near at Fred Howard Park near Tarpon Springs measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 38 knots.
A mesonet station near Dundee measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 35 knots.
A mesonet station near Weeki Wachee measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 37 knots.
A mesonet station near Wildwood measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 36 knots. The AWOS station near The Villages measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 35 knots. In Croom-A-Coochee a tree fell on a home causing damage.
A mesonet station near Beverly Hills measured a tropical storm force wind gust of 40 knots.
A tree fell on a mobile home near Dade City due to gusty winds associated with Hurricane Matthew. Time of occurrence was estimated based off nearby wind observations.
A tree fell onto a car in a McDonald's Parking lot in New Port Richey due to gusty winds associated with Hurricane Matthew.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Florida in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, October 2016The 2016 hurricane season
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 657212, 657211, 657213, 657220, 657219, 657214, 657224, 657226, 657221, 657223, 657232, 657228, 657236, 657230, 657231, 657227, 657489, 657491.