The Great Hurricane of 1780

The hurricane season of 1780 is one of the worst in recorded history. At least eight destructive storms struck American and Caribbean shores that year. In October, three storms in three successive weeks caused unparalleled economic and military destruction. The first, named the Savanna-La-Mer hurricane for the tiny settlement on the island of Jamaica which was completely destroyed by the storm’s tides and winds, struck on October 3rd. The storm would cross Cuba and the Bahamas before encountering the British fleet east of Daytona Beach. Another fleet of British ships would be seriously damaged off the Virginia Coast. Over 1,000 deaths were attributed to the storm.

The storm which destroyed the Windward Islands October 10-12, 1780 is the deadliest ever in recorded Atlantic history. It became known simply as the “Great Hurricane of 1780.” It is believed that 22,000 perished in its week long rampage The evening of October 10th was heralded by a fiery red sunset on the island of Barbados. A light rain began falling shortly afterwards, and by 10 p.m. hurricane force winds were felt. All night long, winds screamed with Cat 5 intensity as the eye passed just north of the island. The entire island was leveled and it is estimated that over five thousand people perished.

The hurricane then set its sights on St. Vincent, where winds gusted to over 172 mph. Over two hundred French and British sailors were drowned as their warships foundered off the islands’ eastern shore. After ravaging St, Lucia, the great hurricane turned its fury on Martinique, where over nine thousand people lost their lives. A supply convoy of forty ships bringing provisions to the island was dashed to bits, resulting in five thousand dead.

The Great Hurricane of 1780 moved northwestward, passing between Puerto Rico and Hispaniola. By the 16th, it was beginning to recurve, skirting the eastern Bahamas. It passed south of Bermuda on October 18th.

Spanish Admiral Solano was enroute from Havana to Pensacola in October 1780 to capture the important port city. The third major hurricane of the month swept north through the Gulf of Mexico catching and scattered the fleet of sixty four warships on October 21st. Over two thousand people died along the eastern Gulf of Mexico

The 1780s were the deadliest decade in recorded North Atlantic Hurricane history. 31,000 people died from hurricanes during the decade. The October storms scuttled much of the British and Spanish navies and aided the colonies in the American Revolution. The British Navy suffered more losses from hurricanes than it did from battle in the Revolutionary War.