Hurricane Abby was the only tropical cyclone in the

Caribbean Sea The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...

during the

1960 Atlantic hurricane season The 1960 Atlantic hurricane season was the least active season since 1952. The season officially began on June 15, and lasted until November 15. These dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones fo ...

. The second tropical cyclone and first named storm of the season, Abby developed on July 10 from a tropical wave in the vicinity of the

Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles ( es, link=no, Antillas Menores; french: link=no, Petites Antilles; pap, Antias Menor; nl, Kleine Antillen) are a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of them are part of a long, partially volcanic island arc betwe ...

. Abby rapidly intensified into a hurricane after being a tropical storm for less than six hours. It briefly peaked as a category 2 hurricane before weakening back. Abby rapidly weakened to a minimal tropical storm a few days thereafter. The storm re-strengthened into a hurricane as it began to parallel the coast of

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...

. Hurricane Abby made landfall in British Honduras (present-day

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

) on July 15. Abby dissipated over

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

later the next day. The remnants of Abby ultimately became Hurricane Celeste in the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

. Despite passing through or near several countries, Hurricane Abby had a relatively light impact on land, resulting in just $640,500 (1960 USD$, USD) in damage and six fatalities.

Meteorological history

The origins of Hurricane Abby were possibly from a tropical wave that moved in the vicinity of the Lesser Antilles in early July 1960. Ships and a few

weather station A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea, with instruments and equipment for measuring atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasts and to study the weather and climate. The measurements taken include tempera ...

s on July 9 reported the existence of a tropical cyclone. On July 9, it had operationally been classified as a tropical storm upon formation, though a later analysis revealed that it was only a tropical depression. The depression passed near

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

early on July 10 before rapidly intensifying into a hurricane. Hurricane Abby accelerated toward the west and made landfall in

St. Lucia Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerin ...

as a minimal category 1 hurricane. Abby emerged into the Caribbean Sea a few hours later. As it headed generally westward, it also gradually strengthened. By July 11, Hurricane Abby had attained peak intensity as an category 1 hurricane. The intensity of Abby began to gradually level off, though it re-intensified slightly in the Caribbean, before eventually weakening further. Abby was downgraded to a tropical storm on the morning of July 13; it was center roughly south of

Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley Inter ...

at the time. Just six hours thereafter, Abby had

maximum sustained wind The maximum sustained wind associated with a tropical cyclone is a common indicator of the intensity of the storm. Within a mature tropical cyclone, it is found within the eyewall at a distance defined as the radius of maximum wind, or RMW. Unl ...

s of only . Abby re-intensified at a relatively quick pace, as it was near hurricane status again when it passed just to the north of Honduras on July 14. Late on July 14, Abby had re-intensified into a hurricane. A few hours later, Abby passed over the island of Roatán at about midnight ( EDT) on July 15. It made a third and final landfall on July 15 when it moved inland over British Honduras (presently known as Belize) as a minimal hurricane. Abby quickly weakened and was downgraded to a tropical storm only a few hours later over land. While Abby approached the border of

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

and Mexico, it had weakened further to a tropical depression. Abby dissipated while situated over the Mexican state of Tabasco on July 16. The remnants crossed over Mexico into the Pacific Ocean and regenerated into Hurricane Celeste on July 20. Hurricane Celeste lasted for two days in the Pacific before it dissipated on July 22.

Preparations and impact

Lesser Antilles

There were many watches and warning issued during the passage of Hurricane Abby throughout the Caribbean. Some gale warnings were issued from the

Grenadines The Grenadines is a chain of small islands that lie on a line between the larger islands of Saint Vincent and Grenada in the Lesser Antilles. Nine are inhabited and open to the public (or ten, if the offshore island of Young Island is counted): ...

Guadeloupe Guadeloupe (; ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Gwadloup, ) is an archipelago and overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Désirade, and the ...

starting on July 10. Around 1600 UTC later that day, a hurricane watch was issued for the

Virgin Islands The Virgin Islands ( es, Islas Vírgenes) are an archipelago in the Caribbean Sea. They are geologically and biogeographically the easternmost part of the Greater Antilles, the northern islands belonging to the Puerto Rico Trench and St. Croix ...

and

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

. Several hours later, the watch was extended to include

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...

and

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

. All warnings were discontinued later, after the storm passed by. Hurricane Abby bypassed Barbados a tropical depression, which resulted in minimal effects. Maximum sustained winds on Barbados were reported at , while gusts were recorded up to . There are no other effects known on Barbados. St. Lucia had borne the brunt of the storm when Hurricane Abby made landfall as a category 1 hurricane. Rainfall on the island totaled at . Tropical storm force winds were recorded on the island for the passage of Hurricane Abby on July 10, though there were no hurricane-force winds reported. In addition, a roof collapsed in on a house, killing six of the residents living there. The passage of Hurricane Abby also resulted in $435,000 (1960 USD$, USD) of damage on St. Lucia.

Martinique Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in th ...

was near the path of Hurricane Abby, which resulted in some effects. The Martinique Aimé Césaire International Airport in

Fort-de-France Fort-de-France (, , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Fodfwans) is a Communes of France, commune and the capital city of Martinique, an overseas department and region of France located in the Caribbean. It is also one of the major cities in the ...

recorded rainfall at nearly , while rain in another village was measured at nearly . Winds on Martinique were also at least tropical storm force during the passage of Hurricane Abby. However, wind gusts on Martinique were around , greater than that which was observed on St. Lucia. There were also damaged roads and bridges, mainly due to landslides. The island nation of

Dominica Dominica ( or ; Kalinago: ; french: Dominique; Dominican Creole French: ), officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean. The capital, Roseau, is located on the western side of the island. It is geographically ...

was also affected by Hurricane Abby. Hurricane Abby produced nearly six in (152.4 mm) of rain on the island. Winds were also similar to those that were measured on Barbados. Hurricane Abby left about $65,000 (1960 USD$, USD) in damage to Dominica.

Greater Antilles and Central America

It was initially believed that Abby would affect Jamaica with gale-force winds and heavy rainfall, and the U.S. Weather Bureau noted that "interests" on the island should monitor the progress of the storm. However, Abby remained far south of the island, and the impact it had on the island, if any, is unknown. Citizens of the

Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territory—the largest by population in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located to the ...

, Central America, and the Yucatan Peninsula were also to remain on alert during the passage of Abby. The U.S. Weather Bureau later warned citizens in British Honduras and Honduras to "take all precautions for the protection of life and property against dangerous winds and abnormally high seas". Hurricane Abby also produced of rain on Swan Island. On the islands north of Honduras, reports were received until winds reached , and then communications were lost. In Belize City, which was north of where Abby made landfall, wind gusts were reported to . Minor property damage was reported in British Honduras, totaling to BZ$6,000 (approximately $3,000 1960 USD; $ USD). In addition, agricultural losses reached BZ$75,000 (about $37,500 1960 USD; $ USD). Although Abby nearly made landfall in Honduras and eventually entered Mexico, no effects were reported, but the U.S. Weather Bureau believed that flooding and there were seas of at least above normal. Throughout its path, Abby caused only about $600,000 (1960 USD$, USD) in damage and six fatalities.

References

External links