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Hurricane Danny (1997)

Hurricane Danny was a Category 1 hurricane at its peak, with 81 mph winds and a lowest pressure of 984 mb, per NOAA's National Hurricane Center. Modeled winds reached tropical-storm force (39 mph) at 7 of the cities we track; the strongest was Daphne, AL, with a modeled peak gust of 71 mph.

Peak strength81 mph winds (1-minute)
Category 1
Cities with tropical-storm-force windsModeled, of the cities we track
7
LandfallsFirst July 18, 1997
3
Lowest pressure
984 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 Danny’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. July 18, 1997, Category 1 at 75 mph, about 54 miles from New Orleans, LA
  2. July 19, 1997, Category 1 at 81 mph, about 32 miles from Daphne, AL
  3. July 19, 1997, Category 1 at 75 mph, about 16 miles from Daphne, AL

Modeled winds at cities (7)

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

CityPeak gustSustainedClosest passPeak
Daphne, AL71 mph58 mph16 milesJul 19, 1997, 12:45 AM CDT
Mobile, AL70 mph57 mph22 milesJul 19, 1997, 12:45 AM CDT
Gulfport, MS70 mph57 mph50 milesJul 18, 1997, 12:45 PM CDT
New Orleans, LA70 mph57 mph50 milesJul 18, 1997, 7:00 AM CDT
Pensacola, FL68 mph56 mph16 milesJul 19, 1997, 8:00 PM EDT
Slidell, LA65 mph53 mph59 milesJul 18, 1997, 8:45 AM CDT
Crestview, FL54 mph44 mph49 milesJul 19, 1997, 8:00 PM EDT

What happened

Danny, which formed over the northern Gulf, first made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane near Empire and Buras, Louisiana, early on July 18, 1997.1 Moving very slowly, its eye reached the mouth of Mobile Bay near Fort Morgan, Alabama, before dawn on July 19, at its peak of 70 knots (81 mph) and 984 mb.1 After stalling over southern Mobile Bay, the center crossed the bay's southeast shore near Mullet Point around midday.1,2

The Dauphin Island C-MAN station measured 10-minute winds of 65 knots (75 mph) and a gust of 88 knots (101 mph) on July 19.1 Storm tides of 2 to 5 feet ran from the Florida line to Dauphin Island, peaking at 6.54 feet along Highway 182 between Gulf Shores and Fort Morgan.1 Most homes and businesses on Dauphin Island, buildings along the western shore of Mobile Bay, and homes from Fort Morgan east to Orange Beach had some roof damage.2,3 Rain totaled 36.71 inches at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab, 33.00 inches at Malbis and 23.54 inches at Daphne.2 Record river flooding caused major damage to homes along the Fowl River in Mobile County and the Fish River in Baldwin County.2 NOAA's Storm Events Database lists $60.5 million in property damage in lower Baldwin County.3

Inland, 8 to 12 inches of rain flooded Charlotte, North Carolina, where two people drowned.1 On July 23, an F2 tornado with winds to 150 mph in Lexington County, South Carolina, killed one person, injured six, and destroyed two homes, a duplex and seven mobile homes.4 On July 24, an F1 tornado in Norfolk, Virginia, destroyed one business and caused major roof damage to six others.5 NHC counts four direct deaths and estimates about $100 million in total damage.1

Sources

  1. 1. NOAA National Hurricane Center: Preliminary Report: Hurricane Danny, 16 to 26 July 1997
  2. 2. NWS Mobile/Pensacola: Hurricane Danny, July 19, 1997
  3. 3. NOAA NCEI: Storm Events Database: Hurricane, Lower Baldwin County, Alabama, July 18, 1997
  4. 4. NOAA NCEI: Storm Events Database: Tornado, Lexington County, South Carolina, July 23, 1997
  5. 5. NOAA NCEI: Storm Events Database: Tornado, Norfolk, Virginia, July 24, 1997

Best track (47 positions)

TimeStatusWindPressurePosition
Jul 16, 12:00 UTCTropical depression29 mph1013 mb27.4°N, 92.6°W
Jul 16, 18:00 UTCTropical depression35 mph1013 mb27.5°N, 92.5°W
Jul 17, 00:00 UTCTropical depression35 mph1011 mb27.7°N, 92.3°W
Jul 17, 06:00 UTCTropical depression35 mph1007 mb27.9°N, 92.0°W
Jul 17, 12:00 UTCTropical storm46 mph1003 mb28.3°N, 91.4°W
Jul 17, 18:00 UTCTropical storm58 mph1002 mb28.6°N, 91.0°W
Jul 18, 00:00 UTCTropical storm63 mph997 mb28.9°N, 90.2°W
Jul 18, 06:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane75 mph992 mb29.2°N, 89.9°W
Jul 18, 09:00 UTC (landfall)Category 1 hurricane75 mph989 mb29.3°N, 89.7°W
Jul 18, 12:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane81 mph990 mb29.5°N, 89.4°W
Jul 18, 18:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane81 mph988 mb29.7°N, 89.0°W
Jul 19, 00:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane81 mph984 mb29.8°N, 88.4°W
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