Worst Hurricanes to Hit Florida, Texas, Louisiana and North Carolina

The strongest, deadliest and costliest hurricanes on record in the four most hurricane-struck states, ranked from NOAA records and mapped.

The worst hurricane to hit Florida was the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane, which killed at least 2,500 people; the strongest was the 1935 Labor Day hurricane and the costliest was Ian in 2022. In Texas, the Galveston hurricane of 1900 killed at least 8,000 people, more than any other US hurricane, and Harvey (2017) is the costliest. Louisiana's deadliest was the Cheniere Caminada hurricane of 1893 and its costliest was Katrina (2005). In North Carolina, Helene (2024) is the deadliest hurricane on record, and Hazel (1954) the strongest.

NOAA's state-by-state table of continental US hurricane impacts records 128 hurricanes in Florida from 1851 through 2025, 67 in Texas, 65 in Louisiana and 60 in North Carolina, more than in any other state. Each state gets three lists below: strongest by wind, deadliest and costliest. Every storm on them is drawn on the map. For the hurricanes since 2014 we add what DisasterAWARE's archive recorded, and for the major landfalls since 2017 the peak storm surge.

How These Lists Are Ranked

• Strongest. Every hurricane that NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) rates at Category 4 or 5 in the state, or Category 3 or higher in North Carolina, which has had only one Category 4. AOML rates each state separately from the estimated maximum sustained winds there. Storms are ordered by that category, then by the wind at landfall in the state from NHC's HURDAT2 best track, then by lower central pressure.
• Deadliest. Deaths as the National Hurricane Center (NHC) or a National Weather Service (NWS) office report them for the state. For recent storms we rank the direct deaths (drowning, wind, surge) that NHC's Tropical Cyclone Reports give for the state. Older figures come from NOAA's list of US tropical cyclones that caused 25 or more deaths, where it names only this state. Where NOAA gives only a total for several states, the storm is not ranked; such totals of 50 or more are noted below the list.
• Costliest. NOAA's billion-dollar disaster estimates, now maintained by Climate Central, which cover 1980 onward and are adjusted for inflation to 2026 dollars. These are whole-storm US costs, so each hurricane is counted once, for the state of its strongest US landfall.

The Map: Every Listed Storm, Its Landfall and the Peak Surge

The map draws the NHC best track of every storm on the 12 lists, coloured by category at each 6-hourly fix, with a dot at each state landfall. Blue dots mark peak surge in NHC's post-storm analyses for 2017–2024 major landfalls and Florence (2018). Toggles add the 2014–2025 landfalls below, wind swaths (2004 on), warnings (2008 on), recon (2008 on), high-water marks, gauges, rain, imagery (1980 on).

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Missing dots. Camille (1969) came ashore in Mississippi, so it has no Louisiana dot; Helene (1958), Emily (1993) and Matthew (2016) kept their centres off the North Carolina coast. Helene (2024) has no North Carolina dot because it made landfall in Florida, and Allen (1980) has no Texas dot because HURDAT2 does not yet mark landfall points for 1976 to 1982.

Florida

Florida has been hit by more hurricanes than any other state, and by three of the four Category 5 landfalls on record in the continental US (see our list of every Category 5 landfall).

Strongest hurricanes to hit Florida

Category: AOML state impact table. Wind and pressure: the storm's strongest Florida landfall record in NHC HURDAT2; landfall dates are UTC (the Labor Day hurricane came ashore on the evening of September 2 local time). Rows 12–16, in order: September 1948 (940 mb), September 1947 (943 mb), September 1945 (949 mb), August 1949 (954 mb) and King, October 1950 (955 mb).

Sixteen hurricanes have hit Florida at Category 4 or 5, five of them since 2004. Charley and Ian came ashore at the same strength, 130 knots and 941 mb, at Cayo Costa on Florida's southwest coast, 18 years apart.

Deadliest hurricanes to hit Florida

1. Okeechobee hurricane, 1928: at least 2,500 deaths, and possibly as many as 3,000 (NHC). Thousands drowned when the storm pushed Lake Okeechobee over its levee (NWS Miami).
2. Labor Day hurricane, 1935: 408, in the Florida Keys.
3. October 1906 hurricane: 164, in southeast Florida and the Keys.
4. Ian, 2022: 66 direct deaths, 150 in all. Every one of Ian's 66 direct US deaths was in Florida, and storm surge caused 41 of them; another 84 Floridians died of indirect causes, according to NHC.
5. October 1910 hurricane: 30, in southwest Florida.

Not ranked, because NOAA gives only a total for several states: the Great Miami hurricane of 1926 (372, the Red Cross count reported by NWS Miami), the September 1906 hurricane (134, Mississippi, Alabama and Pensacola), the September 1896 hurricane (130, with Georgia and South Carolina), Agnes in 1972 (122, Florida and the Northeast), Betsy in 1965 (75, with Louisiana), the September 1947 hurricane (51, with Louisiana and Mississippi) and Donna in 1960 (50, Florida and the eastern US). The 1919 Florida Keys hurricane's deaths are counted under Texas, where most of them occurred.

Costliest hurricanes to hit Florida

1. Ian, 2022: $126.3 billion
2. Helene, 2024: $83.4 billion
3. Irma, 2017: $67.5 billion
4. Andrew, 1992: $64.0 billion
5. Milton, 2024: $36.3 billion

Whole-storm US cost, adjusted to 2026 dollars (Climate Central billion-dollar disaster database, continuing NOAA's). Michael (2018) is sixth at $33.0 billion.

Texas

No Category 5 hurricane has ever hit Texas. Eight have struck at Category 4.

Strongest hurricanes to hit Texas

Category: AOML. Wind and pressure: NHC HURDAT2 Texas landfall record. Dates are UTC.

Deadliest hurricanes to hit Texas

1. Galveston hurricane, 1900: at least 8,000 deaths, and possibly as many as 12,000 (NHC).
2. 1919 Florida Keys hurricane: 284, the official toll in Corpus Christi, where the NWS office there says the true number was more likely 600 to 1,000. The storm surge there reached 16 feet.
3. Galveston hurricane, 1915: 275.
4. September 1875 hurricane: 176.
5. Indianola hurricane, 1886: 150. Harvey (2017) is next, with 68 direct deaths, all in Texas, and about 35 indirect; all but three of the direct deaths were from freshwater flooding. NHC calls Harvey the deadliest hurricane to hit Texas since 1919.

Not ranked, because NOAA gives only a total for several states: Audrey in 1957 (416, southwest Louisiana and north Texas).

Costliest hurricanes to hit Texas

1. Harvey, 2017: $168.8 billion
2. Ike, 2008: $45.9 billion
3. Alicia, 1983: $10.0 billion
4. Beryl, 2024: $7.7 billion
5. Allen, 1980: $2.4 billion

Whole-storm US cost in 2026 dollars (Climate Central). Tropical Storm Allison (2001, $16.0 billion) would rank third but was never a hurricane.

Harvey alone cost more than twice as much as the other seven Texas-landfall hurricanes in the database combined. Its losses were driven by rain: NHC's report records more than 60 inches over southeastern Texas, and TDI found that most insured losses came from flood and commercial property claims.

Louisiana

Louisiana's worst hurricanes are water disasters. Its deadliest struck low coastal settlements, and its costliest, Katrina, left about 80% of New Orleans flooded, according to NHC.

Strongest hurricanes to hit Louisiana

Category: AOML. Wind and pressure: NHC HURDAT2 Louisiana landfall record. *Camille's centre came ashore near Waveland, Mississippi; AOML rates its winds in Louisiana at Category 5, and the values shown are AOML's for the US coast.

Katrina is not on this list: it came ashore in southeast Louisiana in 2005 as a Category 3, with 110-knot winds, although its 920 mb pressure is the lowest of any Louisiana landfall in HURDAT2.

Deadliest hurricanes to hit Louisiana

1. Cheniere Caminada hurricane, 1893: 1,100 to 1,400 deaths, and near 2,000 counting losses offshore (NHC).
2. Last Island hurricane, 1856: 400.
3. Grand Isle hurricane, 1909: 350.
4. Katrina, 2005: 341 direct deaths in Louisiana, of 520 direct deaths in the US. Counting indirect deaths and those of undetermined cause, NHC's updated report puts Katrina's toll at nearly 1,400 across all states.
5. New Orleans hurricane, 1915: 275.

Not ranked, because NOAA gives only a total for several states: Audrey in 1957 (416, southwest Louisiana and north Texas), Camille in 1969 (256, Mississippi, southeast Louisiana and Virginia), Betsy in 1965 (75, with southeast Florida) and the September 1947 hurricane (51, with Florida and Mississippi).

Costliest hurricanes to hit Louisiana

1. Katrina, 2005: $212.6 billion, the costliest US disaster in the database
2. Ida, 2021: $89.8 billion
3. Rita, 2005: $31.1 billion
4. Laura, 2020: $29.7 billion
5. Gustav, 2008: $9.1 billion

Whole-storm US cost in 2026 dollars (Climate Central). Andrew (1992) made its second landfall in Louisiana and is counted under Florida.

North Carolina

Seven of North Carolina's 60 hurricanes reached Category 3 or stronger there in AOML's table, and two of those seven never brought their centre ashore. Its deadliest made landfall in Florida.

Strongest hurricanes to hit North Carolina

Category: AOML. Wind and pressure: NHC HURDAT2 North Carolina landfall record; * AOML's coastal estimate where the centre stayed offshore or HURDAT2 has no pressure. Hazel's landfall point lies on the state line. AOML rates Gloria Category 3 in North Carolina although its HURDAT2 landfall wind, 90 kt, is Category 2 strength.

Hazel is the only Category 4 on record in North Carolina. It came ashore near Calabash at the time of the year's highest lunar tide, and the NWS reports a storm surge of up to 18 feet there. In Long Beach, only five of 357 buildings were left standing.

Deadliest hurricanes to hit North Carolina

1. Helene, 2024: 85 direct deaths, 107 in all. Freshwater flooding, including landslides and debris flows, caused 77 of the 85 direct deaths in western North Carolina, according to NHC. Helene's centre made landfall in Florida's Big Bend, not in North Carolina.
2. September 1883 hurricane: 53.
3. Floyd, 1999: 35 of its 56 US deaths. Most of Floyd's deaths were drownings in freshwater flooding.
4. Fran, 1996: 26.
5. (tie) Matthew, 2016: 25 direct deaths, 24 of them in floods, and Connie, 1955: 25.

Not ranked, because NOAA gives only a total for several states: the October 1898 hurricane (179, with Georgia and South Carolina; its centre came ashore in Georgia), the San Ciriaco hurricane of 1899 (at least 50, with South Carolina; the same storm killed 3,369 people in Puerto Rico) and the August 1940 hurricane (50, with Georgia and South Carolina). Hazel killed 19 people in North Carolina, according to NWS Newport/Morehead City, of 95 in the US (NWS Wilmington).

Costliest hurricanes to hit North Carolina

1. Florence, 2018: $31.7 billion
2. Irene, 2011: $19.8 billion
3. Floyd, 1999: $12.9 billion
4. Fran, 1996: $10.6 billion
5. Isabel, 2003: $9.9 billion

Whole-storm US cost in 2026 dollars (Climate Central), for hurricanes whose strongest US landfall was in North Carolina. Helene ($83.4 billion) is counted under Florida, where it came ashore, and Matthew under South Carolina.

Peak Storm Surge Since 2017

NOAA found that large US hurricane death tolls were primarily the result of storm surge of 10 feet or more, and surge caused 41 of Ian's 66 direct deaths. These are the peak inundation heights in NHC's post-storm analyses, which combine tide gauges, USGS sensors and surveyed high-water marks (and, where observations were missing, storm-surge hindcasts), for every hurricane that came ashore in the four states at Category 3 or stronger from 2017 to 2024, plus Florence. Heights are above normally dry ground.

• Laura, 2020 (Louisiana): 17.1 ft, a USGS still-water high-water mark in a home in Creole, the highest measurement without wave action; NHC estimates the maximum inundation at 18 ft.
• Helene, 2024 (Florida): 12 to 16 ft from just west of Keaton Beach through Steinhatchee.
• Ian, 2022 (Florida): 10 to 15 ft in Fort Myers Beach.
• Michael, 2018 (Florida): up to 14 ft in Mexico Beach, where a USGS sensor on the pier recorded 14.7 ft above mean higher high water.
• Ida, 2021 (Louisiana): 9 to 14 ft on the east bank of the Mississippi River in Plaquemines Parish.
• Idalia, 2023 (Florida): 8 to 12 ft, partly from a hindcast, from Keaton Beach to Steinhatchee.
• Florence, 2018 (North Carolina): 8 to 11 ft along the Neuse River and its tributaries; a USGS sensor across the river from New Bern recorded 10.4 ft above mean higher high water.
• Harvey, 2017 (Texas): 8 to 10 ft on the western shores of San Antonio and Hynes bays.
• Milton, 2024 (Florida): up to 10 ft near Manasota Key, an NHC estimate (no reliable high-water mark there).
• Zeta, 2020 (Louisiana): 6 to 10 ft, from observations and a hindcast, in unprotected wetlands of Plaquemines Parish west of the Mississippi River levee, between Port Sulphur and Empire.
• Irma, 2017 (Florida): 5 to 8 ft in the Lower Keys, from Cudjoe Key to Big Pine Key and Bahia Honda Key.

In the DisasterAWARE Archive Since 2014

DisasterAWARE's historical archive holds 2,964 tropical cyclone records worldwide, not counting exercises and tests; 1,990 of them, all from 1998 onward, carry the IBTrACS best track. Records are alerts, not storms: Irma has four, two of them shared with Maria.

Below is every hurricane landfall in the four states from 2014 through 2025 (NHC HURDAT2; the strongest, if several in a state) with, in bold, how long before it DisasterAWARE first carried the storm. Queried from the Historical Hazards API on October 9, 2026, by storm name, 30 days before to 10 days after landfall.

• Arthur 2014 (NC): Jul 4, 03:15 UTC, 85 kt; 72 h
• Hermine 2016 (FL): Sep 2, 05:30 UTC, 70 kt; 105 h
• Harvey 2017 (TX): Aug 26, 03:00 UTC, 115 kt; 198 h
• Irma 2017 (FL): Sep 10, 13:00 UTC, 115 kt; 262 h
• Nate 2017 (LA): Oct 8, 00:00 UTC, 75 kt; 81 h
• Florence 2018 (NC): Sep 14, 11:15 UTC, 80 kt; 356 h
• Michael 2018 (FL): Oct 10, 17:30 UTC, 140 kt; 93 h
• Barry 2019 (LA): Jul 13, 15:00 UTC, 65 kt; 72 h
• Dorian 2019 (NC): Sep 6, 12:30 UTC, 85 kt; 310 h
• Hanna 2020 (TX): Jul 25, 22:00 UTC, 80 kt; 67 h
• Isaias 2020 (NC): Aug 4, 03:10 UTC, 80 kt; 156 h
• Laura 2020 (LA): Aug 27, 06:00 UTC, 130 kt; 171 h
• Delta 2020 (LA): Oct 9, 23:00 UTC, 85 kt; 122 h
• Zeta 2020 (LA): Oct 28, 21:00 UTC, 100 kt; 96 h
• Ida 2021 (LA): Aug 29, 16:55 UTC, 130 kt; 74 h
• Nicholas 2021 (TX): Sep 14, 05:30 UTC, 65 kt; 39 h
• Ian 2022 (FL): Sep 28, 19:05 UTC, 130 kt; 130 h
• Nicole 2022 (FL): Nov 10, 07:45 UTC, 65 kt; 71 h
• Idalia 2023 (FL): Aug 30, 11:45 UTC, 100 kt; 87 h
• Beryl 2024 (TX): Jul 8, 08:40 UTC, 80 kt; 228 h
• Debby 2024 (FL): Aug 5, 11:00 UTC, 70 kt; 68 h
• Francine 2024 (LA): Sep 11, 22:00 UTC, 90 kt; 73 h
• Helene 2024 (FL): Sep 27, 03:10 UTC, 120 kt; 84 h
• Milton 2024 (FL): Oct 10, 00:30 UTC, 100 kt; 106 h

Alert tier: the time from the storm's earliest DisasterAWARE record to landfall, rounded to the nearest hour. It measures how long the platform had been tracking the storm, not a specific warning's lead time. There were no US hurricane landfalls in 2025.

DisasterAWARE was carrying all 24 storms more than 38 hours before landfall, and 20 of them at least three days ahead. For the six landfalls since 2023, the archive also holds the NWS post-storm station maxima, all OBSERVED. Helene's record carries 1,410 rainfall stations, topped by 30.78 inches at Busick, North Carolina, and 87 water-level stations. Milton's peak rainfall, 20.4 inches, fell near St. Petersburg, and Beryl's, 14.99 inches, at Thompsons, Texas.

For insurers and reinsurers

• The losses, state by state. State insurance regulators collect claims from the insurers they oversee; none of the four figures includes policies written directly by the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). Florida's Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) puts Ian's estimated insured losses at $22.2 billion on 789,066 claims (as of March 4, 2025). The Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) reported that insurers expected to pay $19.6 billion on about 763,000 Harvey claims (through September 30, 2018), $6.7 billion of it federal flood insurance written by private insurers. The Louisiana Department of Insurance (LDI) reported $13.9 billion paid or reserved on 478,417 Ida claims through September 30, 2022. North Carolina's Department of Insurance (NC DOI) counted $3.49 billion of incurred losses on 125,658 Helene claims as of September 12, 2025.
• How these storms changed the view of the peril. Category says little about loss. Harvey, a Category 4, did most of its damage with rain and became Texas's costliest hurricane. Helene's North Carolina deaths came from flooding far inland, in a state where it did not make landfall. Helene's insured losses in North Carolina ($3.49 billion, NC DOI) compare with its whole-storm cost of $83.4 billion (Climate Central).
• What event-level data exists. For storms since 1998, DisasterAWARE's enhanced records hold the best track, with quadrant 34-, 50- and 64-knot wind radii where the agencies published them (generally from 2004), and the time the platform first carried the event. For 2023 onward they add NWS post-storm rainfall, water-level and wind-station maxima.
• What we do not hold. DisasterAWARE's cyclone records carry no casualty or damage figures; every death and loss figure here is quoted from the named source.
• Where to go next. Historical Event Intelligence delivers these storms as structured, location-queryable events. You can request a sample dataset for your exposure along the Gulf and Carolina coasts.

2026 Status

• Hurricane Isaias made landfall near Destin, Florida, at about 8:30 p.m. CDT on October 9, 2026 (01:30 UTC October 10), as a Category 2 with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph and a central pressure of 971 mb, according to NHC's preliminary estimate. It was the season's first Atlantic hurricane; at noon CDT that day, NHC had given 120 mph and 959 mb.
• This page will be updated when NHC publishes its final report on Isaias.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the worst hurricane to hit Florida? By deaths, the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane, which killed at least 2,500 people around Lake Okeechobee. The strongest was the 1935 Labor Day hurricane (892 mb, 185 mph) in the Florida Keys, and the costliest was Ian in 2022, at $126.3 billion in 2026 dollars.

What is the worst hurricane to hit Texas? The Galveston hurricane of September 1900, a Category 4 that killed at least 8,000 people. The strongest Texas landfall was the 1886 Indianola hurricane, and the costliest Texas hurricane is Harvey (2017), at $168.8 billion in 2026 dollars. No Category 5 hurricane has ever hit Texas.

What is the worst hurricane to hit Louisiana? Katrina (2005) is the costliest, at $212.6 billion in 2026 dollars, and caused 341 direct deaths in Louisiana. The deadliest was the Cheniere Caminada hurricane of 1893, which killed 1,100 to 1,400 people. Camille (1969) brought Category 5 winds to Louisiana, and Ida (2021) came ashore with 150 mph winds and the lowest pressure of the state's Category 4 landfalls.

What is the worst hurricane to hit North Carolina? Helene (2024), which caused 85 direct deaths in North Carolina, 77 of them from flooding in the western mountains, and 107 deaths in all. The strongest was Hazel (1954), the only Category 4 on record in the state, and the costliest whose strongest landfall was in North Carolina is Florence (2018), at $31.7 billion.

Which state is hit by the most hurricanes? Florida. NOAA's table records hurricane impacts in Florida 128 times from 1851 through 2025, followed by Texas (67), Louisiana (65) and North Carolina (60).

Related Reading

• Strongest Hurricanes to Hit the US: Every Category 5 Landfall (Mapped)
• Reconstructing Historic Hurricanes
• Hurricane risk in Miami, Houston and New Orleans
• Historical Event Intelligence

Sources: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 Atlantic best track (release of September 2026); NOAA AOML, "Continental United States Hurricane Impacts/Landfalls 1851–2025" (revised September 2026); NOAA Technical Memorandum NWS NHC-6, "The Deadliest, Costliest, and Most Intense United States Tropical Cyclones from 1851 to 2010"; NHC Tropical Cyclone Reports (Katrina, updated January 2023; Harvey, Irma, Florence, Michael, Matthew, Floyd, Laura, Zeta, Ida, Ian, Idalia, Helene, Milton); NWS Miami (1926 Miami hurricane), NWS Corpus Christi (1919 hurricane), NWS Newport/Morehead City and NWS Wilmington (Hurricane Hazel); Climate Central, US Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters (CPI-adjusted to 2026, accessed October 9, 2026); Florida OIR Hurricane Ian claims data; TDI Hurricane Harvey data call (April 25, 2019); LDI Hurricane Ida data call release (November 3, 2022); NC DOI Hurricane Helene data call, sixth report; USGS Short-Term Network high-water marks; NHC Isaias update (October 9, 2026); DisasterAWARE Historical Hazards API (pulled October 9, 2026).