text: 1971 atlantic hurricane season the 1971 atlantic hurricane season was fairly active with several notable storms . hurricane edith , the strongest of the season , was a category 5 on the saffir - simpson scale , the highest category on the scale . it struck nicaragua at peak intensity , killing dozens , and later hit southern louisiana . until 2003 , hurricane ginger held the record for the longest known duration of a north atlantic tropical cyclone , lasting 27 . 25 days from early september to early october ; it is currently the second longest - lasting atlantic hurricane . ginger moved ashore in north carolina , producing heavy rains and damaging winds . an unnamed storm in august attained hurricane status further north than any other atlantic hurricane . the season officially began on june 1 , and lasted until november 30 , 1971 ; these dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones form in the atlantic basin . with thirteen tropical storms , of which six became hurricanes , the season was active . despite the activity , damage in the united states totaled about $ 235 million ( 1971 usd , $ 1 . 37 billion 2016 usd ) , which national hurricane center forecaster paul hebert noted was " pretty small considering we had five storms in a row strike the u.s. " most of the damage came from tropical storm doria , which affected much of the east coast of the united states . hurricane fern struck texas after executing an unusual track , dropping heavy rainfall and producing flooding . the first storm , arlene , developed on july 4 off the coast of north carolina . activity was steady through most of the season , and the last storm , laura , dissipated on november 22 . storms tropical storm arlene the origins of arlene were from a cold front that exited the east coast of the united states on july 2 and stalled offshore . a frontal wave developed the next day , steadily developing due to thermal instability . on july 4 , the system organized into a tropical depression about 120 mi ( 195 km ) southeast of cape hatteras , north carolina . while in its formative stages , it dropped rainfall along the coast of the carolinas , peaking at 4 . 11 in ( 104 mm ) in , south carolina . the depression tracked northeastward due to a ridge over new england , and the cyclone passed just southeast of the outer banks . after a hurricane hunters plane observed gale force winds , the depression was upgraded to tropical storm arlene late on july 5 ; in the post - season summary , meteorologist neil frank noted , " the surprising element in the development of arlene was the rapidity of the transformation process . " upon being named , arlene continued northeastward , possessing a circular mass of convection with spiral rainbands . late on july 6 , the storm attained peak winds of 65 mph ( 100 km / h ) , based on a ship report . it weakened thereafter , and arlene transitioned into an extratropical cyclone late on july 7 just south of newfoundland . the cyclone last observed early the following day . the storm capsized a boat in the grand banks of newfoundland , and the crew of 12 was rescued . unnamed hurricane a hybrid - type depression formed east of bermuda on july 29 . it moved rapidly southwestward before turning to a northwest drift . on august 3 , it was classified as a tropical depression , and the next day the system passed near bermuda . the depression accelerated to the northeast , strengthening into a tropical storm on august 5 . it intensified further due to baroclinity , or enhanced instability through different levels of the atmosphere caused by temperature and moisture gradients . on august 6 , a drilling rig about 230 mi ( 370 km ) southeast of newfoundland recorded sustained winds of 90 mph ( 140 km / h ) with gusts to 126 mph ( 204 km / h ) at an altitude of 325 ft ( 99 m ) ; this suggested the storm attained hurricane status at 46 ° north , which is the northernmost location for a tropical storm to intensify into a hurricane . despite the intensity , the cyclone was not purely tropical ; although the radius of maximum winds was only 35 mi ( 56 km ) , the thermal structure did not resemble a tropical cyclone , and there was no precipitation or convection near the center . it continued northeastward and dissipated on august 7 to the southwest of greenland . it was not named operationally , but it was later added to the atlantic hurricane database . hurricane beth on august 9 , an upper - level low developed off the coast of florida , and the next day spawned a tropical depression . the newly developed cyclone tracked slowly northeastward , eventually encountering conditions favorable for development . on august 14 , the depression intensified into tropical storm beth off the coast of north carolina , and it quickly strengthened into a hurricane by august 15 . after reaching peak winds of 85 mph ( 137 km / h ) off the coast of cape cod , beth slightly weakened and later moved ashore near copper lake , nova scotia . shortly thereafter , beth was swept up by a nearby cold front and transitioned into an extratropical cyclone . the hurricane left extensive damage in its wake , especially to crops and infrastructure . halifax international airport reported 10 . 49 in ( 266 mm ) of rainfall in a 30 ‑ hour span , which caused widespread flooding . several bridges in the region were washed out , while railways were covered by water , forcing trains to suspend their operation . overall monetary damage from beth is estimated up to $ 5 . 1 million ( 1971 usd , $ 29 . 8 million 2016 usd ) . one person was indirectly killed by the hurricane in a traffic accident induced by heavy rainfall . tropical depression eight on august 11 , tropical depression eight developed southwest of fort myers , florida . it quickly moved ashore , reaching lake okeechobee before looping to the northwest . while moving across the state , it dropped heavy rainfall of around 10 in ( 250 mm ) along the west coast . in pinellas park , the heavy rains led to flash flooding that forced 200 families from their house , including one that required evacuation from a helicopter . damage in the region was estimated at $ 250 , 000 ( 1971 usd , $ 1 . 46 million 2016 usd ) . the depression emerged into the gulf of mexico on august 15 near tampa , and later turned to the northeast ahead of an upper - level low . on august 16 , it intensified as it moved ashore near cedar key , where hurricane - force wind gusts were briefly observed . the depression dissipated on august 17 over south carolina , although in that state it produced its heaviest rainfall , totaling 14 . 11 in ( 358 mm ) in sullivan 's island . in nearby savannah , georgia , the rainfall forced about 100 families from their houses in low - lying areas . the remnants continued northeastward through the mid - atlantic states and new england , crossing into canada on august 20 . tropical storm chloe a tropical wave moved off the coast of africa on august 13 , moving westward for several days before organizing into a tropical depression on august 18 about 460 mi ( 740 km ) east of barbados . it quickly moved through the lesser antilles , where it produced wind gusts up to 58 mph ( 93 km / h ) . the cyclone also dropped heavy rainfall up to 6 in ( 150 mm ) on barbados and martinique . after entering the eastern caribbean sea , the depression intensified into tropical storm chloe on august 20 . about 18 hours after attaining tropical storm status , chloe quickly strengthened to peak winds of 65 mph ( 105 km / h ) about 215 mi ( 345 km ) south of the mona passage , as reported by reconnaissance aircraft . after reaching peak intensity , chloe began weakening as it turned to the west - southwest , and late on august 22 , it was downgraded to a tropical depression as a weakening ridge to its north cut off the low - level inflow . for several days it continued generally westward , gradually losing organization . while passing south of jamaica , the storm prompted the evacuation of the ss hope , a hospital ship , at kingston . on august 25 , chloe moved ashore in belize as a weak tropical depression , and dissipated shortly thereafter without ever having caused significant damage or deaths . the remnants of chloe later spawned hurricane lily in the eastern pacific ocean . tropical storm doria tropical storm doria , the costliest storm of the season , developed from a tropical wave on august 20 to the east of the lesser antilles , and after five days without development attained tropical storm status to the east of florida . doria turned to the north , and reached peak winds of 65 mph ( 105 km / h ) as it was making landfall near morehead city , north carolina . it turned to the northeast , and moved through the mid - atlantic and new england as a tropical storm before becoming an extratropical storm over maine on august 29 . in north carolina , doria produced moderate rainfall , resulting in localized flooding and damage . the storm spawned a tornado near norfolk , virginia , damaging twelve houses and downing hundreds of trees . tropical storm doria dropped heavy precipitation in new jersey , peaking at 10 . 29 in ( 261 mm ) in little falls . the rainfall led to record - breaking river levels and flooding in several houses , resulting in damage to dozens of houses across the state . moderate damage and rainfall continued along its path into new england and southeastern canada . in all , tropical storm doria caused seven deaths and $ 147 . 6 million ( 1971 us $ , $ 862 million 2016 usd ) . hurricane fern hurricane fern was the first of four tropical systems to develop in association with an extended surface trough across the gulf of mexico into the open atlantic , along with ginger , heidi , and a strong tropical depression . fern developed on september 3 in the central gulf of mexico . it moved over southern louisiana the next day , but due to increased ridging to the north the depression moved southwestward back over water . on september 7 , the depression intensified into tropical storm fern ; it is rare for a tropical depression to move over land in the continental united states ( excluding florida ) and later attain tropical storm status . fern later turned to the northwest , intensifying into a hurricane on september 8 . it quickly reached peak winds of 90 mph ( 140 km / h ) , but later weakened as it curved to the southwest , moving ashore on september 10 between freeport and matagorda , texas as a tropical storm . fern dissipated on september 13 over northeastern mexico . the precursor of fern dropped rainfall up to 5 in ( 130 mm ) of rainfall across south florida , while totals of up to 10 in ( 250 mm ) were reported in southeastern louisiana where it made its first landfall . as it struck texas , fern produced strong winds up to 86 mph ( 138 km / h ) , along with 5 to 6 ft ( 1 . 5 to 1 . 8 m ) storm tides and heavy rainfall ; the highest precipitation total was 26 . 0 in ( 660 mm ) in . the heavy rainfall caused severe flash flooding that isolated numerous small towns in the southeastern portion of the state , damaging 7 , 500 buildings . in all , fern left two indirect deaths and moderate damage totaling $ 30 . 2 million ( 1971 usd , $ 171 million 2016 usd ) . hurricane edith hurricane edith , the strongest storm of the season , developed from a tropical wave on september 5 to the east of the southern lesser antilles . it moved quickly across the southern caribbean sea , intensifying into a hurricane just off the north coast of south america . edith rapidly intensified on september 9 and made landfall on cape gracias a dios as a category 5 hurricane on the saffir - simpson hurricane scale . it quickly lost intensity over central america and after briefly entering the gulf of honduras it crossed the yucatán peninsula in mexico . after moving across the gulf of mexico , a trough turned the storm to the northeast and edith , after having restrengthened while accelerating towards the coast , made landfall on louisiana with winds of 105 mph ( 170 km / h ) on september 16 . edith steadily weakened over land and dissipated over georgia on september 18 . the hurricane killed two people when it passed near aruba . striking northeastern central america as a category 5 hurricane , edith destroyed hundreds of homes and killed at least 35 people . in texas high tides caused coastal flooding but little damage . edith caused moderate to heavy damage in portions of louisiana due to flooding and a tornado outbreak from the storm . one tornado , rated f3 on the fujita scale , damaged several homes and injured multiple people in baton rouge . the tornado outbreak extended eastward into florida . damage in the united states totaled $ 25 million ( 1971 usd , $ 146 million 2016 usd ) . hurricane ginger hurricane ginger was the longest lasting atlantic hurricane on record until 2003 , when the 1899 san ciriaco hurricane was retroactively found to have lasted longer . the eighth tropical cyclone and fifth hurricane of the season , ginger spent 27 . 25 days as a tropical cyclone , and lasted from september 6 to october 3 . the storm developed in a large region of convection across the gulf of mexico and western atlantic , and for the first nine days of its duration tracked generally east- or northeastward while gradually strengthening to peak winds of 110 mph ( 175 km / h ) . on september 14 ginger slowed and turned to a general westward track , passing near bermuda on september 23 ; there , the hurricane produced gusty winds and high waves , but no damage . while over the western atlantic ocean , ginger became the last target of project stormfury , which sought to weaken hurricanes by depositing silver iodide into tropical cyclone rainbands . the plane dropped silver iodide into the center of ginger , although there was no effect due to ginger 's large eye and diffuse nature ; ginger was the last seeding done by the project . ginger ultimately struck north carolina on september 30 as a minimal hurricane , lashing the coastline with gusty winds that caused power outages across the region . heavy rainfall flooded towns and left heavy crop damage , with 3 million bushels of corn and 1 million bushels of soybean lost . damage in the state was estimated at $ 10 million ( 1971 usd , $ 58 . 4 million 2016 usd ) . further north , moderate rainfall and winds spread through the mid - atlantic states , although no significant damage was reported outside of north carolina . tropical storm heidi tropical storm heidi was the last of the four tropical systems to develop from the extended surface trough of low pressure , forming on september 11 northeast of the bahamas and intensifying into a tropical storm the next day . after initially moving to the northwest , heidi curved northeastward and attained its peak intensity of 65 mph ( 100 km / h ) on september 14 off the coast of virginia . the storm failed to become a well - organized system , and it gradually weakened while accelerating north - northeastward . on september 15 , shortly after heidi moved ashore in maine , it was absorbed by a broad extratropical cyclone over the northern appalachians . heidi did not directly cause any fatalities or severe damage . however , the larger extratropical storm drew in moisture from heidi , producing rainfall from north carolina through northern new england , including a peak of 9 . 38 in ( 238 mm ) in southeastern pennsylvania . the heavy rains triggered extensive flooding that caused over a dozen fatalities and left thousands of residents homeless in pennsylvania and new jersey . in chester , pennsylvania a stone dam collapsed , forcing hundreds of families to evacuate and damaging homes , businesses , roads , and bridges . governor milton shapp declared a state of emergency in several pennsylvania counties following the floods . hurricane irene a tropical wave spawned a tropical depression on september 11 about 800 mi ( 1300 km ) east of the windward islands . the cyclone tracked nearly due westward at a low latitude , passing through the southern windward islands and later over northern south america . in the southwest caribbean sea , it intensified to a tropical storm and later a hurricane . irene made landfall on southeastern nicaragua on september 19 , and maintained its circulation as it crossed the low - lying terrain of the country . after reaching the pacific , irene was renamed hurricane olivia , which ultimately attained peak winds of 115 mph ( 185 km / h ) before weakening and dissipating over northwestern mexico . in the atlantic , irene produced moderate rainfall and winds along its path , although impact was greatest in nicaragua where it moved ashore as a hurricane . a total of 96 homes were destroyed , and 1 , 200 people were left homeless . the rainfall resulted in widespread flooding , killing three people in rivas . in neighboring costa rica , hurricane irene caused more than $ 1 million ( 1971 usd , $ 5 . 84 million 2016 usd ) in damage to the banana crop . the hurricane was the first actively tracked tropical cyclone that moved into the eastern pacific ocean from the atlantic ocean . tropical storm janice the origins of janice were from a tropical wave that moved off the coast of africa on september 18 . it developed into a tropical depression on september 21 about 1050 mi ( 1700 km ) west - southwest of cape verde , which was the easternmost formation of the named storms this season . the next day , the depression intensified into tropical storm janice , and quickly reached peak winds of 65 mph ( 105 km / h ) . the storm never became well - organized , with its peak winds located east of the broad center . despite being in a climatologically favored region for further development , janice weakened due to increased wind shear from hurricane ginger . the circulation became elongated and separated from the convection , and on september 24 the storm weakened to a tropical depression . later that day janice dissipated just northeast of the lesser antilles as it was absorbed by ginger . around that time , it produced rainfall in the northeastern caribbean , reaching 4 in ( 100 mm ) on saint kitts ; no damage or fatalities were reported . tropical storm kristy the interaction between a tropical wave and an upper - level trough led to the development of a tropical depression on october 18 , about 685 mi ( 1100 km ) northeast of puerto rico . it moved quickly north - northeastward , followed by a curve to the northeast . on october 20 , a ship reported winds of 45 mph ( 72 km / h ) , indicating the depression intensified into tropical storm kristy . as it reached this strength , an approaching cold front produced cooler , drier air over the storm . kristy intensified slightly further to peak winds of 50 mph ( 85 km / h ) before becoming indistinguishable from the cold front . by october 21 it transitioned into an extratropical cyclone before dissipating near the azores . tropical storm laura the final storm of the season , laura , formed on november 12 in the western caribbean sea , and reached winds of 70 mph ( 120 km / h ) as it approached western cuba . across the island , the storm produced heavy rainfall , peaking at 32 . 5 in ( 830 mm ) . the resulting flooding killed one person and caused crop damage , and also forced 26 , 000 people to evacuate their homes . initially , laura was forecast to move across the island and impact the southern united states , but it executed a small loop and turned to the southwest . the storm moved ashore on belize , one of only four november storms to affect the country . little impact occurred during laura 's final landfall , and it dissipated on november 22 over central guatemala . laura had the second highest accumulated cyclone energy ( ace ) of any atlantic tropical cyclone that did not attain hurricane status behind a tropical storm in 1913 . other storms in addition to the named storms and otherwise notable cyclones , there were several weak depressions during the season . after a june devoid of activity , three tropical depressions developed within the first ten days of july . the first became tropical storm arlene on july 4 , and the second formed off the coast of louisiana on july 6 . tropical depression two moved westward due to a ridge to its northeast , and it struck just west of the texas / louisiana border before dissipating on july 8 . its precursor dropped 3 . 90 in ( 99 mm ) near carrabelle , florida , but much less along its path . just two days later , another tropical depression formed in the northwestern gulf of mexico , quickly moving ashore in southern texas before dissipating on july 11 ; it dropped light rainfall along its path . in august , there were two tropical depressions , in addition to the named storms and the notable tropical depression eight . the first , tropical depression five , developed in the central gulf of mexico on august 6 . it made landfall in louisiana three days later , eventually dissipating over mississippi . the other , designated tropical depression eleven , formed over the bahamas on august 28 . it moved westward , crossing florida and the gulf of mexico before dissipating over southeastern louisiana on september 1 . the depression dropped moderate rainfall along the gulf coast , peaking at 6 . 82 in ( 173 mm ) at gulf shores , alabama . there were three non - developing tropical depressions in september , the first of which just off the coast of africa on september 3 . it moved west - northwestward , passing near cape verde before dissipating on september 8 . the next , tropical depression eighteen , originated on september 8 east of florida from the same trough that also spawned fern , ginger , and heidi . it initially moved northward before curving to the west , making landfall near the georgia / south carolina border on september 11 before dissipating the following day . the other , tropical depression nineteen , developed off the coast of africa on september 10 , moving westward before dissipating on september 14 . the final non - developing tropical depression of the season formed on october 6 in the western caribbean sea . it crossed the yucatán peninsula the next day , dropping heavy rainfall up to 9 . 09 in ( 231 mm ) . the depression turned to the northeast due to an approaching upper - level trough , and it transitioned into an frontal wave on october 10 . as the trough advanced ahead of the storm , a ridge built across the southeast united states , causing the cyclone to turn northward and parallel the west coast of florida . it regained tropical characteristics before moving ashore near apalachicola and dissipating on october 14 . storm names the following names were used for named storms ( tropical storms and hurricanes ) that formed in the north atlantic in 1971 . names that were not assigned are marked in gray . storms were named beth , kristy and laura for the first time in 1971 . no names were retired after the 1971 season .