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Unnamed hurricane of 1938 (AL031938)

Unnamed hurricane of 1938 (AL031938) was a Category 2 hurricane at its peak, with 98 mph winds, per NOAA's National Hurricane Center. Modeled winds reached tropical-storm force (39 mph) at 3 of the cities we track; the strongest was Lake Charles, LA, with a modeled peak gust of 72 mph.

Peak strength98 mph winds (1-minute)
Category 2
Cities with tropical-storm-force windsModeled, of the cities we track
3
LandfallsFirst August 15, 1938
1
Lowest pressure
Not recorded

Track, wind field and cities

Select a piece of the track or a city for details.

  • Depression or weaker
  • Tropical storm
  • Hurricane, Category 1 or 2
  • Major hurricane, Category 3 to 5
  • Landfall
  • City (larger ring, stronger modeled gust)
  • Modeled wind field, 39 to 111 mph sustained (darker, stronger; orange 111 mph+)
Source: NOAA/NWS National Hurricane Center best track (HURDAT2). City winds and the wind field are modeled.

The shaded areas are where our model puts Unnamed hurricane of 1938 (AL031938)’s sustained winds over open land at 39 mph or more (tropical-storm force), 58, 74 (hurricane force) and 111 mph (major hurricane force) at some point along its track. Modeled, not measured. How we model hurricane winds

Landfalls

  1. August 15, 1938, Category 1 at 75 mph, about 30 miles from Lake Charles, LA

Modeled winds at cities (3)

Estimated peak winds for open, flat ground at each city’s center. Not measurements. How we model hurricane winds

CityPeak gustSustainedClosest passPeak
Lake Charles, LA72 mph58 mph15 milesAug 14, 1938, 8:00 PM GMT-5
Beaumont, TX54 mph44 mph41 milesAug 14, 1938, 8:00 PM GMT-5
Lafayette, LA50 mph41 mph85 milesAug 14, 1938, 8:00 PM GMT-5

Best track (24 positions)

TimeStatusWindPressurePosition
Aug 10, 00:00 UTCTropical storm40 mph11.2°N, 58.6°W
Aug 10, 06:00 UTCTropical storm46 mph11.6°N, 60.7°W
Aug 10, 12:00 UTCTropical storm52 mph12.2°N, 62.8°W
Aug 10, 18:00 UTCTropical storm52 mph13.1°N, 65.0°W
Aug 11, 00:00 UTCTropical storm58 mph14.1°N, 67.3°W
Aug 11, 06:00 UTCTropical storm63 mph15.4°N, 69.9°W
Aug 11, 12:00 UTCTropical storm69 mph16.8°N, 72.7°W
Aug 11, 18:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane75 mph18.0°N, 75.5°W
Aug 12, 00:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane81 mph18.7°N, 78.1°W
Aug 12, 06:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane92 mph19.0°N, 80.0°W
Aug 12, 12:00 UTCCategory 2 hurricane98 mph19.1°N, 81.7°W
Aug 12, 18:00 UTCCategory 2 hurricane98 mph19.6°N, 83.1°W
Show all 24