1940 Atlantic hurricane season

The 1940 Atlantic hurricane season was a generally average period of tropical cyclogenesis in 1940. Though the season had no official bounds, most tropical cyclone activity occurred during August and September. Throughout the year, fourteen tropical cyclones formed, of which nine reached tropical storm intensity; six were hurricanes. None of the hurricanes reached major hurricane intensity. Tropical cyclones that did not approach populated areas or shipping lanes, especially if they were relatively weak and of short duration, may have remained undetected. Because technologies such as satellite monitoring were not available until the 1960s, historical data on tropical cyclones from this period are often not reliable. As a result of a reanalysis project which analyzed the season in 2012, an additional hurricane was added to HURDAT. The year's first tropical storm formed on May 19 off the northern coast of Hispaniola. At the time, this was a rare occurrence, as only four other tropical disturbances were known to have formed prior during this period; below the 1931–1943 average of 91.2. ACE is a metric used to express the energy used by a tropical cyclone during its lifetime. Therefore, a storm with a longer duration will have high values of ACE. It is only calculated at six-hour increments in which specific tropical and subtropical systems are either at or above sustained wind speeds of , which is the threshold for tropical storm intensity. Thus, tropical depressions are not included here. At the time, ship observations indicated that the disturbance had a well-defined cyclonic circulation, with the strongest winds situated in the northern semicircle of the cyclone. Offshore, the hurricane generated rough seas and a strong storm surge, peaking at on the western edge of Lake Pontchartrain. The anomalously high tides flooded many of Louisiana's outlying islands, inundating resorts. Strong winds caused moderate infrastructural damage, primarily in Texas, though its impact was mainly to communication networks along the U.S. Gulf Coast which were disrupted by the winds. However, much of the property and crop damage wrought by the hurricane was due to the torrential rainfall it produced in low-lying areas, setting off record floods. Rainfall peaked at in Miller Island off Louisiana, making it the wettest tropical cyclone in state history. Nineteen official weather stations in both Texas and Louisiana observed record 24-hour rainfall totals for the month of August as a result of the slow-moving hurricane. Property, livestock, and crops – especially cotton, corn, and pecan crops – were heavily damaged. Entire ecosystems were also altered by the rainfall. Overall, the storm caused $10.75 million in damages and seven fatalities. Precipitation peaked at in Idlewild, North Carolina. The heavy rainfall caused streams to greatly exceed their respective flood stages, damaging waterfront property. Many of the deaths occurred in North Carolina, where 30 people died. Overall, the storm caused 50 fatalities and $13 million in damages. However, the hurricane continued to intensify, and reached peak intensity as a modern-day Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of and a minimum barometric pressure of , though these statistical peaks were achieved at different times on September 2. Afterwards, the tropical cyclone began a weakening trend as it proceeded northward, and had degenerated into a tropical storm by the time it made its first landfall on Nova Scotia later that day. The storm transitioned into an extratropical cyclone the next day while making another landfall on New Brunswick. The extratropical remnants persisted into Quebec before merging with a larger extratropical system late on September 3. Extensive precautionary measures were undertaken across the coast, particularly in New England. The heightened precautions were due in part to fears that effects from the storm would be similar to that of a devastating hurricane which struck the region two years prior. Most of the damage associated with the hurricane occurred in New Jersey, where the combination of moisture from the hurricane and a stationary front produced record rainfall, peaking at in the town of Ewan. This would make the storm the wettest in state history. The resultant floods damaged infrastructure, mostly to road networks. Damage in the state amounted to $4 million. Overall, the hurricane caused $4.05 million in damage, primarily due to flooding in New Jersey, and seven fatalities. Moving into the Gulf of Saint Lawrence later that day, the storm transitioned into an extratropical cyclone. The remnant system curved eastward and passed over Newfoundland before dissipating over the Atlantic on September 19.

While off of the United States East Coast, the hurricane caused numerous shipping incidents, most notably the stranding of the Swedish freighter Laponia off of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina on September 16. Two other boat incidents resulted in two deaths. The hurricane also brought strong winds of tropical storm-force and snow over areas of New England. In Atlantic Canada, a strong storm surge peaking at above average sunk or damaged several ships and inundated cities. In New Brunswick, the waves hurt the lobster fishing industry. In Nova Scotia, strong winds disrupted telecommunication and power services. The winds also severely damaged crops. Strong winds in New Brunswick caused moderate to severe infrastructural damage, and additional damages to crops occurred there. The region is referred as British Honduras in the article.|group="nb"

Hurricane Seven

In late September, a tropical wave persisted in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean. The low-pressure area later became sufficiently organized to be classified as a tropical storm at 0000 UTC on September 22. The tropical cyclone continued to the east-northeast, where it gradually intensified. At 1200 UTC on September 23, the hurricane attained modern-day Category 2 hurricane intensity with winds of 100 mbar (155 km/h); a peak which would be maintained for at least the following 12 hours. A second steamship, the Lobito, reported hurricane-force winds along with a minimum pressure of ; this would be the lowest pressure measured associated with the tropical cyclone. The maximum reported gust in the Azores was an observation of on September 25. As a result of moving slowly over the islands, torrential rainfall was also reported. At Angra do Heroísmo, of precipitation was reported in a four-day, accounting for a third of the station's yearly average rainfall. Strong storm surge was reported at the same location. The waves swept boats away from the coasts of islands. Further inland, there was extensive damage to homes and crops, though no people died. which would be considered as tropical storm-force winds. The depression later moved to the northeast before it was absorbed by a stationary front on September 7. Since there was only one report that the disturbance may have reached tropical storm intensity, it was not included in HURDAT. Later on September 10, a trough was detected in a similar region in the Atlantic where the first depression formed. The trough later became sufficiently organized to be classified as a tropical depression. The cyclone moved slowly to the east and did not further intensify before dissipating on September 13.