Hurricane Ione () was a strong Category 4 hurricane that affected the U.S. state of North Carolina in September 1955, bringing high winds and significant rainfall. It came on the heels of Hurricanes Connie and Diane,

Meteorological history

A tropical wave moved through Cape Verde on September 6. On September 11, Ione developed into a tropical depression. The storm weakened to a tropical storm over land but restrengthened to a Category 2 hurricane over the northwestern Atlantic.

Preparations

Hurricane warnings were in effect from the Virginia Capes to Morehead, North Carolina and a Hurricane alert was issued northward to Atlantic City, New Jersey. Dump trucks loaded with dirt were ready to make earthen dikes around the Riegel paper mill, due to the severe damage caused to it by hurricanes earlier that year which caused the 1955 Delaware River flood. Recent flooding, from Hurricane Diane, along the Delaware River kept residents along its banks alert should the storm strike, business owners were also ready to move their merchandise if the need arose. Flights were canceled in New York, firemen stood at the ready in Staten Island, and the Coast Guard warned shipping companies of the impending storm.

Impact

thumb|right|United States rainfall from Ione|alt=A rainfall graphic showing the eastern seaboard of the eastern seaboard of the United States. There is a track line entering central North Carolina then curves to the Northeast and the track line exits the coast near the Virginia border. The highest rainfall amounts, , are to the southeast of the track. The further southwest and north you go the lesser the rainfall amounts in those areas.

September 18 was a gloomy day in Swan Quarter, North Carolina and winds did not significantly increase until between 2 and 3 p.m. By 9:30 p.m., strong winds buffeted the area from the east-northeast and the electricity went out at around 10:50 p.m. The storm surge from Ione was recorded at at Morehead City, North Carolina, while a storm tide of was measured at Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina. It was reported that the storm lasted for nearly two days in North Carolina.

Ione caused $600 million (2005 USD) in damage, much of it to crops across North Carolina. Along the Trent River near Trent and the New River near Gum Branch, North Carolina, the river stage reached heights not seen again until Hurricane Floyd of the 1999 Atlantic hurricane season. Ione caused seven deaths in North Carolina, a low number attributed to well-executed warnings and effectiveness of relief groups such as the Red Cross. That day the storm became extratropical, yet still had negative effects on Canada.

See also

  • Hurricane Bonnie (1998)
  • List of Atlantic hurricanes
  • List of wettest tropical cyclones in North Carolina
  • List of North Carolina hurricanes

References

  • NOAA page on the three 1955 North Carolina hurricanes
  • History of North Carolina storms, including excerpts from diary entries on Ione
  • The Canadian Hurricane Centre's page on storms in 1955