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Hurricane Carmen (1974)

Hurricane Carmen was a Category 4 hurricane at its peak, with 155 mph winds and a lowest pressure of 928 mb, per NOAA's National Hurricane Center. Modeled winds reached tropical-storm force (39 mph) at 6 of the cities we track; the strongest was Lafayette, LA, with a modeled peak gust of 103 mph.

Peak strength155 mph winds (1-minute)
Category 4
Cities with tropical-storm-force windsModeled, of the cities we track
6
LandfallsFirst September 1, 1974
5
Lowest pressure
928 mb

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 Hurricane Carmen’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. September 1, 1974, Category 3 at 121 mph, 17.6°N, 82.4°W
  2. September 2, 1974, Category 4 at 155 mph, in Mexico
  3. September 2, 1974, Category 4 at 144 mph, in Mexico
  4. September 8, 1974, Category 3 at 115 mph, about 44 miles from Lafayette, LA
  5. September 8, 1974, Category 3 at 121 mph, about 28 miles from Lafayette, LA

Modeled winds at cities (6)

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

CityPeak gustSustainedClosest passPeak
Lafayette, LA103 mph83 mph17 milesSep 8, 1974, 7:00 AM CDT
Lake Charles, LA79 mph64 mph29 milesSep 8, 1974, 9:00 AM CDT
Baton Rouge, LA76 mph61 mph68 milesSep 8, 1974, 7:00 AM CDT
New Orleans, LA62 mph50 mph107 milesSep 7, 1974, 11:45 PM CDT
Slidell, LA54 mph44 mph123 milesSep 8, 1974, 12:30 AM CDT
Beaumont, TX48 mph39 mph54 milesSep 8, 1974, 9:00 AM CDT

What happened

Carmen crossed the Gulf of Mexico as a major hurricane and moved inland on the south-central Louisiana coast just east of Vermilion Bay.1 NHC's best track has two Category 3 landfalls on the morning of September 8, 1974: 100-knot (115 mph) winds and a 952 mb pressure at 0830 UTC (3:30 a.m. CDT), then 105-knot (121 mph) winds and a 948 mb pressure at 1100 UTC (6 a.m. CDT).2

An oil rig at Bayou Boeuf near Amelia recorded a 110 mph gust.3,1 Morgan City recorded an 86 mph gust, and Lafayette recorded an 82 mph gust.3 Storm surge left a high-water mark of 11.6 feet above mean sea level near Cocodrie in Terrebonne Parish, and tides of 4 to 6 feet came ashore in St. Mary, Terrebonne, Lafourche, Jefferson and Plaquemines parishes.3,1 Rain of 5 to 8 inches fell along the track in Vermilion Parish, peaking at 9.20 inches 8 miles south of Kaplan, and low-lying areas across South Louisiana flooded.3,1 F1 tornadoes hit Franklin and Abbeville on September 8, injuring one person in Abbeville.3 Carmen damaged some roofs, mobile homes, barns and lighter structures and toppled signs and billboards.3 NWS Lake Charles puts damage at $150 million, mostly to the sugar crop and offshore oil installations, and lists three deaths indirectly tied to Carmen.1

Sources

  1. 1. NWS Lake Charles: Louisiana Hurricane History (David Roth)
  2. 2. NOAA National Hurricane Center: Atlantic hurricane database (HURDAT2), 1851 to 2025
  3. 3. NWS Lake Charles: Hurricane Carmen 1974

Best track (56 positions)

TimeStatusWindPressurePosition
Aug 29, 06:00 UTCTropical depression35 mph1011 mb15.6°N, 55.8°W
Aug 29, 12:00 UTCTropical depression35 mph1011 mb15.8°N, 58.0°W
Aug 29, 18:00 UTCTropical depression35 mph16.0°N, 60.5°W
Aug 30, 00:00 UTCTropical depression35 mph16.2°N, 63.1°W
Aug 30, 06:00 UTCTropical storm40 mph1006 mb16.4°N, 65.5°W
Aug 30, 12:00 UTCTropical storm46 mph16.5°N, 67.7°W
Aug 30, 18:00 UTCTropical storm46 mph1001 mb16.6°N, 70.0°W
Aug 31, 00:00 UTCTropical storm52 mph1000 mb16.7°N, 72.3°W
Aug 31, 06:00 UTCTropical storm63 mph16.8°N, 74.3°W
Aug 31, 12:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane81 mph988 mb17.0°N, 76.0°W
Aug 31, 18:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane86 mph988 mb17.2°N, 77.9°W
Sep 1, 00:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane92 mph986 mb17.3°N, 79.8°W
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