Tropical Storm Tammy was a short-lived

tropical storm A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

during October in the

2005 Atlantic hurricane season The 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was the most active Atlantic hurricane season in history, until the record was broken 15 years later in 2020. The season broke numerous records at the time, with 28 tropical or subtropical storms recorded. ...

which caused minor damage to the southeastern United States. More significant, however, were its remnants, which contributed to the

Northeast U.S. flooding of October 2005 In October 2005, remnants of Tropical Storm Tammy and Subtropical Depression Twenty-Two merged with incoming continental cold fronts to produce torrential rains over interior New England, as well as over parts of New Jersey and New York. Particul ...

. Tropical Storm Tammy formed from a non-tropical system off the

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

coast on October 5. It moved north just offshore before making

landfall Landfall is the event of a storm moving over land after being over water. More broadly, and in relation to human travel, it refers to 'the first land that is reached or seen at the end of a journey across the sea or through the air, or the fact ...

later that day. The tropical storm rapidly weakened as it moved overland and dissipated the next day. Its remnant circulation moved south towards the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

, while the moisture was absorbed by a northeasterly moving

cold front A cold front is the leading edge of a cooler mass of air at ground level that replaces a warmer mass of air and lies within a pronounced surface trough of low pressure. It often forms behind an extratropical cyclone (to the west in the Norther ...

. There were no fatalities directly related to Tammy; however, ten people were killed by the remnants of the storm in combination with the remnants of Subtropical Depression Twenty-Two. Total damages from the storm were $30 million.

Meteorological history

tropical wave A tropical wave (also called easterly wave, tropical easterly wave, and African easterly wave), in and around the Atlantic Ocean, is a type of atmospheric trough, an elongated area of relatively low air pressure, oriented north to south, which ...

left the western coast of Africa on September 24 and crossed the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

without any development. The wave began to develop on October 2 north 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 ...

when it encountered an upper-level trough. It strengthened as it passed through the

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...

and early on October 5 a vigorous tropical disturbance formed. As the system already had tropical-storm force winds, it was immediately named Tropical Storm Tammy. Upon being classified, the system was poorly organized, with deep

convection Convection is single or multiphase fluid flow that occurs spontaneously due to the combined effects of material property heterogeneity and body forces on a fluid, most commonly density and gravity (see buoyancy). When the cause of the convec ...

only persisting to the northeast of the center of circulation. Tropical storm-force winds were presumed to be located underneath the convection as ship reports nearby the system only reported winds up to . Tammy quickly tracked towards the northwest in a southerly flow between a mid to

upper-level low A cold-core low, also known as an upper level low or cold-core cyclone, is a cyclone aloft which has an associated cold pool of air residing at high altitude within the Earth's troposphere, without a frontal structure. It is a low pressure syste ...

over the

and a

ridge A ridge or a mountain ridge is a geographical feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for an extended distance. The sides of the ridge slope away from the narrow top on either side. The line ...

located over the western Atlantic Ocean. Later that day, a reconnaissance flight into the storm recorded flight level winds of , which corresponds to surface winds of . However, small areas of were reported by the crew members of the aircraft. At 6:30 pm EST (2300 UTC), the storm made landfall with winds of near

Atlantic Beach, Florida Atlantic Beach is a city in Duval County, Florida, United States and part of the Jacksonville Beaches communities. When the majority of communities in Duval County consolidated with Jacksonville in 1968, Atlantic Beach, along with Jacksonville Bea ...

. The tropical storm then moved inland over

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

and into southeastern

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

near

Ozark The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma and the extreme southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover a significant portio ...

, where it lost its circulation on October 6. The remnant low drifted south towards the

before being absorbed by a

(which also picked remnants of Subtropical Depression Twenty-two), and moving northeast. This cold front, of which Tammy's remnants were a part, affected much of the

Northeastern United States The Northeastern United States, also referred to as the Northeast, the East Coast, or the American Northeast, is a geographic region of the United States. It is located on the Atlantic coast of North America, with Canada to its north, the Southe ...

over the next few days.

Preparations

Tropical Storm Tammy surprised forecasters when it formed on October 5. Because they had not expected the disturbance to develop, warnings were not issued until about 12 hours before the storm made landfall. Despite the short warning, tourists and business travelers cancelled flights as the storm neared landfall. Upon the storm developing, a

tropical storm warning Tropical cyclone warnings and watches are alerts issued by national weather forecasting bodies to coastal areas threatened by the imminent approach of a tropical cyclone of tropical storm or hurricane intensity. They are notices to the local popul ...

was immediately issued for the coast from

Cocoa Beach, Florida Cocoa Beach is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. The population was 11,539 at the 2018 United States Census. It is part of the Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. History The first non-native s ...

to the

Santee River } The Santee River is a river in South Carolina in the United States, and is long. The Santee and its tributaries provide the principal drainage for the coastal areas of southeastern South Carolina and navigation for the central coastal plain of ...

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

. The

U.S. Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the interior or home ministries of other countries. Its stated missions involve anti-terr ...

U.S. Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, multi ...

, 7th District issued an advisory to mariners, warning them to prepare for the storm and avoid the ocean if possible. In

, the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

evacuated the residents of

Cumberland Island Cumberland Island, in the southeastern United States, is the largest of the Sea Islands of Georgia. The long-staple Sea Island cotton was first grown here by a local family, the Millers, who helped Eli Whitney develop the cotton gin. With its ...

and closed the ferry which services it. The Glynn County Emergency Operations Agency monitored and prepared for Tropical Storm Tammy's landfall, however the poor warning hampered their efforts. Residents all over the state expressed frustration at the lack of time they had to prepare. When Tammy moved inland 12 hours later the southern end of the warning zone moved north to Altamaha Sound,

before all warnings were discontinued on October 6.

Impact

Tropical Storm Tammy caused minor damage. Its highest sustained winds were and its strongest recorded wind gust was . The winds produced no significant damage, but did disrupt power to 16,500 utility customers and delayed the Trysail College Regatta. Lightning produced by a thunderstorm in

Broward County, Florida Broward County ( , ) is a county in the southeastern part of Florida, located in the Miami metropolitan area. It is Florida's second-most populous county after Miami-Dade County and the 17th-most populous in the United States, with over 1.94 m ...

struck three teenagers during a football game in

Coconut Creek Coconut Creek is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. Situated north of Miami, it had a population of 57,833 in 2020. It is part of the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city seceded from ...

, killing one and injuring the other two. To most areas in north Florida and southern Georgia, Tammy brought of rain, though some isolated areas received . In Georgia, flooding damaged over 30 homes in Brunswick. Several dirt and coastal roads were washed out, and sewers overflowed as far north as

Baltimore County, Maryland Baltimore County ( , locally: or ) is the third-most populous county in the U.S. state of Maryland and is part of the Baltimore metropolitan area. Baltimore County (which partially surrounds, though does not include, the independent City of ...

. Two small pond dams burst, including a 173-year-old wooden dam, but new stone dams were constructed in place before the old ones failed. Conversely, Tammy's rains were beneficial in

, where they helped alleviate dry conditions after a rainless September. Tammy's storm surge was approximately and caused salt-water flooding along the coast of northeastern Florida, Georgia, and

. The surge damages boardwalks along the coast, and wave action causes over of

beach erosion Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of waves, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts of storms. The landward ...

. In addition to the flooding, Tropical Storm Tammy spawned one tornado. Rated an F0

tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...

, it touched down near

Brunswick, Georgia Brunswick () is a city in and the county seat of Glynn County in the U.S. state of Georgia. As the primary urban and economic center of the lower southeast portion of Georgia, it is the second-largest urban area on the Georgia coastline after Sa ...

where it snapped trees and caused moderate roof damage along its path. The storm's total damage was estimated at $30 million (2005 USD). The outer bands of Tammy brought heavy rains, peaking around in places, and caused significant beach erosion. Winds along the coastline gusted up to , downing numerous trees. The worst damage occurred in Beaufort County where 30 trees were downed, one of which fell on a home. Rough seas undermined several beach homes and caused one to be condemned. Casualties in

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

included seven people in New Hampshire and three people in Connecticut.

Aftermath and records

A Red Cross shelter at Seldon Park, Brunswick, Georgia, opened for two days following the storm to temporarily house those whose houses were flooded. Tammy's remnant low was absorbed a larger

extratropical low Extratropical cyclones, sometimes called mid-latitude cyclones or wave cyclones, are low-pressure areas which, along with the anticyclones of high-pressure areas, drive the weather over much of the Earth. Extratropical cyclones are capable of p ...

which tracked north and contributed to the

, which killed ten people and caused significant damage. As a result of the flooding, the

Federal Emergency Management Agency The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Exec ...

paid $44 million in losses. Shrimpers in the

Carolinas The Carolinas are the U.S. states of North Carolina and South Carolina, considered collectively. They are bordered by Virginia to the north, Tennessee to the west, and Georgia to the southwest. The Atlantic Ocean is to the east. Combining Nort ...

blamed high fuel prices and the disruption of Tropical Storm Tammy for some of the troubles facing the shrimping industry in 2005. Rising fuel prices and dwindling demand has already created tough conditions that year, but the disruption of several days' fishing due to Tammy escalated the situation. When Tammy formed on October 5, it became the earliest in the season that the twentieth storm formed, a distinction it held until

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

, when Tropical Storm Vicky formed on September 14.

References

External links