(9) How many hurricane strikes of various categories have affected each state? Table 10, updated from Blake et al. (2007), shows the hurricane strikes affecting the United States and individual states. Note the inland designation is only used for those hurricanes that exclusively struck inland portions of a state (not at the coast).
The table shows that, on average,
close to seven hurricanes every four years (~1.8 per year)
strike the United States, while about
two major hurricanes strike the U.S. coast
every three years.
Other noteworthy facts, updated from Blake et al. (2007), are: 1.) Forty percent of all U.S. hurricanes and major hurricanes were in Florida; 2.) Sixty percent of category 4 or higher hurricane strikes have occurred
in either Florida or Texas; 3.) Sixty percent of all hurricanes affecting Georgia actually come from the south or southwest across northwestern Florida, though these hurricanes from the Gulf of Mexico are much weaker by the time they reach Georgia than those that come from the Atlantic Ocean. It should be noted that both Florida and Texas
have extensive coastlines, which one reason for the high number of occurrences.
(10) When are major hurricanes likely to strike a given area? Table 11 shows the incidence of major hurricanes by month for the U.S. mainland and for individual states. September has about as many major hurricane landfalls as October and August combined. The northern Gulf Coast from Texas to northwest Florida is the prime target for pre-August major hurricanes. The threat of major hurricanes increases from west to east as the season progresses, with major hurricanes favoring the U.S. East Coast by late September. Most major October hurricanes in the United States affect southern Florida.
