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On This Day in 2020: Hurricane Delta Forms
October 3, 2022 at 10:11 AM EDT
By WeatherBug Meteorologist, Fred Allen
In rare air where the Greek-alphabet was used, 2020 delivered a record-breaking 10 land-falling named storms, including Delta on October 9. Unbelievably, Delta’s landfall came approximately 6 weeks and 12 miles apart from devastating Category 4 Hurricane Laura in western Louisiana.
Inconspicuous and struggling to organize for the first few days in the central Caribbean Sea, Delta finally hit a sweet spot in the western Caribbean days later. A mere 36 hours is all it took to go from a tropical storm to a powerful Category 4 Hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Wind Scale. All of this occurred over the western Caribbean Sea as Delta carved a northwest course.
Delta’s intensification from a tropical storm to a Category 2 hurricane in a 24-hour period from October 5th to 6th was the fastest since Hurricane Wilma in 2005. The intensification from a tropical depression to a Category 4 hurricane in just over 36 hours was an extraordinary feat too, breaking a 42-hour record Hurricane Keith set in 2000.
Delta’s northwest trek through the northwestern Caribbean Sea was met with resistance. Dry air and an unfavorable environment aloft wreaked havoc with Delta’s small inner core. This led to weakening, and Delta made landfall as a Category 2 hurricane with sustained winds of 110 mph predawn on October 7th at Puerto Morelos, just south of Cancun, Mexico.
Delta caused more than 266,000 power outages across parts of the Yucatan Peninsula and a peak gust of 110 mph was reported in Puerto Morelos, Mexico. A gust of 106 mph was measured in Cancun, Mexico. Delta’s storm surge destroyed piers and buildings along the coast. Delta destroyed 6,175 acres of crops and caused street flooding in Cozumel, Mexico.
From there, Delta cruised into the western Gulf of Mexico, eventually turning to the north and northeast toward a landfall near in Creole, La., Friday, October 9th. Delta was a Category 2 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Wind Scale, with sustained wind of 110 mph at landfall. This same western Louisiana coast had been reeling from a rendezvous with Category 4 Hurricane Laura just 43 days earlier on August 27, 2020.
The strongest winds packed by Delta were on the hurricane’s western side, which is unusual. A gust of 101 mph was clocked at Texas Point, Texas, while Lake Arthur and Lake Charles, La., had gusts of 96 mph and 95 mph, respectively. A storm surge of 8.32 feet was recorded at Freshwater Canal Locks, La. This is the highest water level on record for this location, besting 8.02 feet during Hurricane Ike in 2008.
Moving quick, Delta managed to squeeze out 6 to 12 inches of rain across much of Louisiana, Arkansas, southeastern Texas, and Mississippi. The Calcasieu Parish Police near coastal Louisiana measured 17.57 inches of rain, which was just northwest of Delta’s track. These amounts were similar to what Laura had dropped nearly 6 weeks before.
Nearly 700,000 power outages occurred in Louisiana from Delta, which were more than what Hurricane Laura had produced. The main reason behind the more extensive outages was Delta’s large size. By Monday, October 12th, utility companies worked feverously and restored power to 512,000 homes, leaving only 188,000 left in the dark.
Delta has quite a list of notable records. It is remembered as the earliest 25th tropical storm on record in an Atlantic hurricane season, as well as the first Greek-alphabet hurricane to make landfall in the United States. Delta was the record-setting tenth named storm of 2020 to make landfall in the United States. This uproots the previous record of nine set in 1916. Delta, until Zeta later in October 2020, was a record-tying fourth named storm to hit Louisiana in 2020.
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Story Image: The 225th BDE Army National Guard is cleaning up tree debris in Lafayette, La., on October 10, 2020, after Hurricane Delta made landfall. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons, Archibald Hill)
Inconspicuous and struggling to organize for the first few days in the central Caribbean Sea, Delta finally hit a sweet spot in the western Caribbean days later. A mere 36 hours is all it took to go from a tropical storm to a powerful Category 4 Hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Wind Scale. All of this occurred over the western Caribbean Sea as Delta carved a northwest course.
Delta’s intensification from a tropical storm to a Category 2 hurricane in a 24-hour period from October 5th to 6th was the fastest since Hurricane Wilma in 2005. The intensification from a tropical depression to a Category 4 hurricane in just over 36 hours was an extraordinary feat too, breaking a 42-hour record Hurricane Keith set in 2000.
Delta’s northwest trek through the northwestern Caribbean Sea was met with resistance. Dry air and an unfavorable environment aloft wreaked havoc with Delta’s small inner core. This led to weakening, and Delta made landfall as a Category 2 hurricane with sustained winds of 110 mph predawn on October 7th at Puerto Morelos, just south of Cancun, Mexico.
Delta caused more than 266,000 power outages across parts of the Yucatan Peninsula and a peak gust of 110 mph was reported in Puerto Morelos, Mexico. A gust of 106 mph was measured in Cancun, Mexico. Delta’s storm surge destroyed piers and buildings along the coast. Delta destroyed 6,175 acres of crops and caused street flooding in Cozumel, Mexico.
From there, Delta cruised into the western Gulf of Mexico, eventually turning to the north and northeast toward a landfall near in Creole, La., Friday, October 9th. Delta was a Category 2 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Wind Scale, with sustained wind of 110 mph at landfall. This same western Louisiana coast had been reeling from a rendezvous with Category 4 Hurricane Laura just 43 days earlier on August 27, 2020.
The strongest winds packed by Delta were on the hurricane’s western side, which is unusual. A gust of 101 mph was clocked at Texas Point, Texas, while Lake Arthur and Lake Charles, La., had gusts of 96 mph and 95 mph, respectively. A storm surge of 8.32 feet was recorded at Freshwater Canal Locks, La. This is the highest water level on record for this location, besting 8.02 feet during Hurricane Ike in 2008.
Moving quick, Delta managed to squeeze out 6 to 12 inches of rain across much of Louisiana, Arkansas, southeastern Texas, and Mississippi. The Calcasieu Parish Police near coastal Louisiana measured 17.57 inches of rain, which was just northwest of Delta’s track. These amounts were similar to what Laura had dropped nearly 6 weeks before.
Nearly 700,000 power outages occurred in Louisiana from Delta, which were more than what Hurricane Laura had produced. The main reason behind the more extensive outages was Delta’s large size. By Monday, October 12th, utility companies worked feverously and restored power to 512,000 homes, leaving only 188,000 left in the dark.
Delta has quite a list of notable records. It is remembered as the earliest 25th tropical storm on record in an Atlantic hurricane season, as well as the first Greek-alphabet hurricane to make landfall in the United States. Delta was the record-setting tenth named storm of 2020 to make landfall in the United States. This uproots the previous record of nine set in 1916. Delta, until Zeta later in October 2020, was a record-tying fourth named storm to hit Louisiana in 2020.
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Story Image: The 225th BDE Army National Guard is cleaning up tree debris in Lafayette, La., on October 10, 2020, after Hurricane Delta made landfall. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons, Archibald Hill)