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Hurricane Claudette (2003)

Hurricane Claudette was a Category 1 hurricane at its peak, with 92 mph winds and a lowest pressure of 979 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 League City, TX, with a modeled peak gust of 56 mph.

Peak strength92 mph winds (1-minute)
Category 1
Cities with tropical-storm-force windsModeled, of the cities we track
6
LandfallsFirst July 11, 2003
2
Lowest pressure
979 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 Claudette’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 11, 2003, tropical storm at 58 mph, in Mexico
  2. July 15, 2003, Category 1 at 92 mph, about 70 miles from Corpus Christi, TX

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
League City, TX56 mph46 mph86 milesJul 15, 2003, 6:45 AM CDT
Corpus Christi, TX55 mph45 mph57 milesJul 15, 2003, 1:00 PM CDT
Pearland, TX55 mph45 mph87 milesJul 15, 2003, 6:45 AM CDT
Sugar Land, TX54 mph44 mph89 milesJul 15, 2003, 6:45 AM CDT
Pasadena, TX52 mph42 mph96 milesJul 15, 2003, 6:45 AM CDT
Houston, TX49 mph40 mph103 milesJul 15, 2003, 6:45 AM CDT

What happened

Claudette crossed the Gulf of Mexico from the Yucatan Peninsula and came ashore on Matagorda Island, Texas, just east of Port O'Connor, at about 10:30 a.m. CDT on July 15, 2003, as a Category 1 hurricane with 80-knot (92 mph) winds and a 979 mb central pressure.1 Claudette moved inland across Calhoun, southern Victoria and Goliad counties, and places under its eye had hurricane-force winds for up to 6 hours.2

A coastal station at Port O'Connor measured a gust of 78 knots (90 mph), and Victoria measured a gust of 72 knots (83 mph) before a power failure cut its record short.1 Storm surge ran 3 to 6 feet above normal tide near landfall, and storm tides of 6 to 9 feet were measured in the Galveston and Freeport area.1 An F1 tornado damaged several buildings in Palacios, and a second tornado damaged homes in Port Lavaca.1 NHC counts one direct and two indirect deaths and estimates $180 million in total US damage.1

Sources

  1. 1. NOAA National Hurricane Center: Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Claudette, 8 to 17 July 2003
  2. 2. NWS Corpus Christi: Hurricane Claudette, July 15, 2003

Best track (45 positions)

TimeStatusWindPressurePosition
Jul 7, 00:00 UTCTropical wave29 mph1010 mb11.1°N, 53.5°W
Jul 7, 06:00 UTCTropical wave35 mph1010 mb11.8°N, 55.3°W
Jul 7, 12:00 UTCTropical wave35 mph1010 mb12.6°N, 57.5°W
Jul 7, 18:00 UTCTropical wave40 mph1010 mb13.2°N, 59.8°W
Jul 8, 00:00 UTCTropical wave40 mph1009 mb13.7°N, 62.0°W
Jul 8, 06:00 UTCTropical wave46 mph1009 mb14.0°N, 64.8°W
Jul 8, 12:00 UTCTropical wave46 mph1009 mb14.4°N, 67.6°W
Jul 8, 18:00 UTCTropical storm52 mph1006 mb14.8°N, 70.0°W
Jul 9, 00:00 UTCTropical storm58 mph1001 mb15.0°N, 72.0°W
Jul 9, 06:00 UTCTropical storm69 mph1003 mb15.1°N, 74.4°W
Jul 9, 12:00 UTCTropical storm63 mph1004 mb15.3°N, 76.5°W
Jul 9, 18:00 UTCTropical storm63 mph1002 mb15.8°N, 78.6°W
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