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All storm pages · 1961 Atlantic season

Hurricane Hattie 1961

Category 5 hurricane · Atlantic · October 26 to November 1, 1961

No storm in the record came ashore in Belize with stronger winds than Hattie's 150 mph landfall on October 31, 1961; 24 storms have a landfall record there. It reached Category 5 with 165 mph winds, one of 44 Atlantic storms to do so since 1851. No other storm of the 1961 Atlantic season matched its 165 mph peak; the season had 12 storms. The name Hattie is on the National Hurricane Center's list of retired Atlantic hurricane names.

Track of Hattie (1961) from the best-track record, coloured by strength10°N15°N20°N90°W85°W80°WSan LuisSan AndrésBelize, 150 mphPeak 165 mphFirst recordDepressionTropical stormCategory 1Category 2Category 3Category 4Category 500 and 12 UTCLandfall

Strength over time

Maximum sustained wind of Hattie (1961) over time, in mphTSCat 1Cat 2Cat 3Cat 4Cat 504080120160200Oct 27Oct 28Oct 29Oct 30Oct 31Nov 1mph
  1. First record (tropical depression) 100 miles northeast of Colón, Panama
  2. Tropical storm 95 miles north of Colón, Panama
  3. Hurricane 10 miles south of San Andrés, Colombia
  4. Major hurricane 115 miles north of San Andrés, Colombia
  5. Peak 140 miles east-northeast of Belize City, Belize, Belize; lowest pressure 914 mb
  6. Landfall Belize
  7. Last record (tropical depression) 55 miles north-northeast of Huehuetenango, Guatemala

Against every Atlantic storm since 1851

Peak sustained wind165 mph · tied 21st of 1,98830 mph190 mph
Lowest central pressure914 mb · tied 17th of 1,277882 mb1016 mb
Accumulated cyclone energy20.4 · 234th of 1,7520.173.6
Days as a tropical or subtropical cyclone6.2 days · tied 665th of 1,9880.0 days31.8 days

In the 1961 season

04080120160200Hattie

Storm 9 of 12 in 1961, hurricane 7 of 8; it formed after Gerda and before Jenny. Hattie produced 11% of the season's accumulated cyclone energy. See the season.

Places the center passed

The center came within 50 miles of 7 towns or cities of 10,000 people or more while the system was tropical. Distances are to the interpolated track line, not the storm's edge.

PlaceClosestWind thenDate
San Andrés, Colombia1 mi85 mphOctober 28
Dangriga, Stann Creek, Belize10 mi150 mphOctober 31
El Cayo, Cayo, Belize19 mi110 mphOctober 31
Belmopan, Cayo, Belize19 mi125 mphOctober 31
Belize City, Belize, Belize23 mi150 mphOctober 31
Flores, Petén, Guatemala24 mi70 mphOctober 31
San Luis, Petén, Guatemala34 mi75 mphOctober 31

Every storm within 50 miles of San Luis, Petén, Guatemala

Similar landfalls in Belize

Storms whose strongest landfall record in Belize came closest to Hattie's 150 mph:

  • Iris (2001)145 mph, October 9, 2001
  • Richard (2010)100 mph, October 25, 2010
  • Francelia (1969)100 mph, September 3, 1969
  • Lisa (2022)90 mph, November 2, 2022

All 24 storms with a landfall record in Belize

Also peaked at 165 mph

Of 6 storms from other Atlantic seasons, the nearest in time: