Hurricane Bob
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- This article is about the Atlantic hurricane of 1991. For other storms of the same name, see Hurricane Bob (disambiguation).
Template:Infobox hurricane | areas affected=North Carolina, Long Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine, Atlantic Canada | hurricane season=1991 Atlantic hurricane season }} Hurricane Bob was a major hurricane that struck New England and the Canadian Maritimes in August of the 1991 Atlantic hurricane season.
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Storm history
Template:Storm path On August 16, a tropical depression formed 200 miles (320 km) to the east of the Bahamas. This storm moved slowly to the northwest and intensified. By the end of the next day, the storm had become a hurricane and was named Bob, as it was the second storm of the season.
As Bob became a hurricane, it began to move to the northeast and accelerated. By August 19, the storm was located 30-35 miles (50-55 km) to the east of Cape Hatteras, and was at its peak intensity of 115 mph (185 km/h). As the storm moved quickly northeast, it began to weaken over the colder waters. The storm made landfall near New Bedford, Massachusetts, packing 100 mph (155 km/h) winds. The storm cut a path across southeastern Massachusetts and then into the Gulf of Maine. As it did this, it continued to weaken and began to lose its tropical characteristics. By 10 p.m. that evening, the storm made a second landfall in Rockland, Maine, at which time it was downgraded to a tropical storm. The storm proceeded across eastern Maine and New Brunswick and then out to sea on August 29.
Impact
Hurricane Bob brought sustained hurricane force winds to the immediate coastal communities of Rhode Island and most of southeast Massachusetts. Strong tropical storm force winds blew across the remainder of the region, with many areas receiving gusts to hurricane force east of the Connecticut River. Wind damage to trees and utility poles was common and resulted in numerous power outages. Over 60 percent of the residents across southeast Rhode Island and southeast Massachusetts lost power. Damage was also extensive to apple and peach orchards across these areas. Image:Bob91newspap.JPG Coastal communities bore the brunt of the storm, with sustained winds between 75 to 100 mph. Peak wind gusts to 125 mph were recorded on Cape Cod in the towns of Brewster and Truro, as well as in Wethersfield, Connecticut. The highest sustained wind of 100 mph, was recorded in North Truro. Block Island reported sustained winds of 90 mph, with gusts in excess of 105 mph (maximum speed of equipment). Wind gusts to near 100 mph were recorded in Newport and by the Navy Ship USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58), which was riding out the storm on the east passage between Newport and Jamestown, Rhode Island. Additionally, there were four reports of tornadoes as Bob came ashore. The lowest barometric pressure was recorded by the USS Valdez (FF-1096) while in the east passage of Narragansett Bay, with a reading of 28.47 inches.
Hurricane Bob caused a storm surge of 6 to 10 feet(above mean tide) along the Rhode Island shore, but drove a surge of 10 to 15 feet into Buzzards Bay. The Buzzards Bay shore east to Cape Cod was hardest hit. The highest surges, of 12 to 15 feet, were observed in Onset, Bourne, Mashpee and Wareham, at the head of Buzzard's Bay. Cove Road, in Mattapoisett, Massachusetts had 29 of 37 homes destroyed, while Angelica Point, Massachusetts lost 32 of 35 homes along the shore. Boat damage was significant, as many boats were torn from their moorings. Extensive beach erosion occurred along the shore from Westerly, Rhode Island eastward. Some south facing beach locations on Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Island lost up to 50 feet of beach to erosion.
The storm also affected the Canadian Maritimes. Two boys were killed by being swept out to sea. The eye passed directly over Campobello Island, New Brunswick. Template:Clear
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Significant rainfall of 3 to 6 inches fell across all but southeast Rhode Island and eastward to Cape Cod, where less than 1 inch fell. The heaviest rainfall of over 7 inches affected western Rhode Island and extreme eastern Connecticut. Portland, Maine had the highest amount of rain with 8.24 inches; the 24 hour rainfall associated with Bob set a record for Portland. Its storm total rainfall graphic is located here.
It was the strongest hurricane to strike New England since Hurricane Gloria hit on September 27, 1985. Bob was responsible for six deaths in Connecticut and 18 deaths overall. It spawned tornadoes in North Carolina and Long Island. Total damage in southern New England was approximately $1.5 billion ($2.3 billion in 2005 dollars).
Retirement
Template:Seealso The name Bob was retired in the spring of 1992 and will never be used again for an Atlantic hurricane. It was replaced with Bill in the 1997 season.
See also
References
Note: Large amounts of information on this page have been incorporated from NOAA, allowable under United States fair use laws. Original source of the information is at http://www.erh.noaa.gov/er/box/hurricanebob.htm The page has the disclaimer "This information was taken from SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND TROPICAL STORMS AND HURRICANES, A Ninety-eight Year Summary 1909-1997, by David R. Vallee and Michael R. Dion, National Weather Service, Taunton, MA."