There is one hurricane season that stands out above all others for New England. While most hurricane seasons in New England have been defined by one major storm (1938, 1960, 1991, 1999, and 2011 to name a few), there have only been two seasons in which two powerful hurricanes struck back to back. The first was in 1869. The second year was 1954, which featured an even worse double whammy than 1869.
A tropical wave north of the Bahamas formed into a tropical depression in late August. This depression moved north-northwest and intensified into a tropical storm. The storm had slowed to a crawl by this point. The storm turned to the west and strengthened to a category two hurricane. The hurricane, which was still barely moving, then turned north and began to make the familiar northeast turn south of North Carolina. The storm's forward speed increased at this point.
The hurricane remained a category two storm as it passed just offshore of the outer banks. The northeast track shifted north of the Carolinas to a more north northeast track. At this point, the storm had strengthened to a category three storm. The hurricane passed over Long Island before making landfall in Connecticut as a category three hurricane with sustained winds of 115 miles per hour. Carol would be New England's fifth and most recent major hurricane.
After making landfall in Connecticut, the storm quickly lost tropical characteristics and became post-tropical as it approached New Hampshire. Despite this, the storm maintained hurricane-force winds as far north as Lake Winnipesaukee. Wind gusts of category one intensity were felt as far north and east as Augusta, Maine.
Storm surge, as expected in a major hurricane, was the primary threat as it made landfall in Connecticut. Storm surge levels were exacerbated during Carol in part because the storm hit shortly after high tide. Surge levels exceeded five feet along New England's entire south coast, with up to fifteen feet of water reported in eastern Connecticut, all of Rhode Island, and the southwest coast of Massachusetts.
As with many other storms, Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island was the hardest hit. Surges of up to 14 feet were reported in the upper reaches of the bay. Some areas of the bay exceeded the storm surge seen in the great 1938 hurricane, such as Providence's South Street Station. This location received 14.4 feet of water. Twelve feet of water had submerged downtown Providence.
Carol, like the 1938 hurricane, wreaked havoc on coastal communities in Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts. In these areas, some communities were nearly wiped out. Many communities appeared to have been hit by a tornado. The Fremont Tribune reported on the aftermath in Cape Cod as follows:
“Police estimated that 1,000 cottages were smashed to kindling on Cape beaches. Armed troops patrolled darkened streets of some Cape Cod towns as evacuees slept in public buildings and at homes of the more fortunate.”
Only two homes in Bourne's Taylor's Point neighborhood were reported to be unaffected by the storm. There were 200 houses on this point at the time. The storm devastated most of Cape Cod, but the 'elbow' of the cape was relatively spared. According to the Boston Globe:
“The fury of the storm was concentrated between the canal and Falmouth, although there was considerable damage all the way to the tip. As far down as Dennis, the picture was one of awesome destruction. Getting into Chatham, the scene changed for the better. Damage at the Cape's elbow was little more than one would see after any hard Northeaster.”
Because the hurricane was so compact in size, the cutoff in damage and impacts was very sharp. This is why parts of Cape Cod and western Connecticut were not as hard hit. In Rhode Island, the Fremont Tribune would go on to report:
“Within an hour the entire business district [of Providence] was under four feet of water. In Westerly, R. I., automobiles parked on the main street were covered completely by the flood waters. About 200 summer homes were reported swept away. The famed casino in Newport, R. I., was wrecked.”
The storm made landfall in the eastern part of Connecticut. Impacts were sharply reduced to the west of the track, with winds failing to reach hurricane force in many areas of western Connecticut and lower surge reported. The eastern side of the state, particularly along the border with Rhode Island, was hit hard.
In Groton, on the border with Rhode Island, up to 90% of homes were destroyed in the Groton Long Point section of town. Hurricane Carol most likely had the most defined eye of any hurricane to hit New England. When the eye passed over Groton, the sky was mostly clear with only a light breeze. According to the Groton Observer:
“Winds of hurricane force from 9:00 A.M. to 11:30 A.M. did much damage to buildings, trees, and boats in this area. Power and telephone lines severely damaged causing loss of service for several hours.”
While storm surge was the primary cause of damage during this storm, the hurricane's extreme category three winds did their part as well. A record wind gust of 135mph was recorded on Block Island. Winds of up to 100 miles per hour were felt across extreme eastern Connecticut, all of Rhode Island, and the southwest Massachusetts coast.
With the exception of lower Cape Cod, hurricane force winds (at least 74 mph) extended from central Connecticut all the way through southern Maine. It was reported that up to one-third of customers in New England lost power. Damage to trees and crops was severe, as it had been in 1938. According to the Boston Globe:
“The WBZ radio tower collapsed. Official wind speeds were recorded at 84mph with gusts exceeding 100mph…Window panes were also broken at the studio. All over Greater Boston felled trees, billboards, telephone poles and even rooftops spasmodically knocked out the MTA.”
Coastal wind speeds from Hurricane Carol:
The storm had completely transformed into an extratropical storm by the time it reached northern New England. Despite this, the storm was still extremely powerful. As the storm lost its tropical characteristics, it expanded from its small, compact size at landfall. The wind field expanded with the storm. This allowed for strong winds to hit all of New Hampshire as well as much of Maine.
As previously stated, hurricane-force winds were felt all the way into Maine, stretching to Augusta. The majority of the damage in northern New England was caused by fallen trees, power lines, and destroyed crops. Falling trees killed people in both New Hampshire and Maine.
Storm surge remained relatively low across New Hampshire and Maine, but tides rose slightly. According to the Boston Globe, the effects on the New Hampshire seacoast are as follows:
“Abnormally high tides accompanied the storm. The entire seacoast was a mass of wrecked boats.”
Vermont saw little impact because it was on the tamer west side of the track. Winds in some areas of the state reached tropical storm force. The storm wreaked havoc on Lake Champlain. The following was reported:
“The storm whipped up the waters of Lake Champlain, swamping more than 200 small boats, loosening floats and moving docks several hundred feet.”
Rainfall was the one potential impact that was limited during this hurricane. The highest reported rainfall total was approximately six inches.
With vast improvements in forecasting since the 1938 hurricane, there was some forewarning of this hurricane's approach. Without the warning, this storm would have likely resulted in hundreds of deaths, similar to what occurred in 1938. Instead, 65 people were killed across New England.
Officials were able to evacuate dangerous areas thanks to the advanced warning. As officials declared an emergency, 20,000 people were evacuated from Cape Cod. Thousands were also evacuated from Connecticut and Rhode Island's coasts. This was one of the first instances of a coordinated storm evacuation in New England, and it saved hundreds of lives.
After the storm passed, New England was left to pick up the pieces. Many parts of the region were devastated, and states were forced to devise means of controlling the areas. Rhode Island Governor Dennis Roberts declared martial law across the state after learning that damages were expected to exceed $50 million. To prevent looting, Massachusetts deployed the national guard to six Cape Cod communities. Overnight, armed troops patrolled the streets.
Massachusetts and Rhode Island were declared federal disaster areas by President Dwight Eisenhower. Massachusetts received 1.5 million dollars in federal disaster aid. A few days after the storm, with cleanup in full swing, a line of thunderstorms passed through the area, knocking out some of the restored power. According to the Miami News (via the Associated Press):
“The brief storm in scattered parts of Massachusetts knocked out recently restored telephone and electric circuits, including about 3,000 in Greater Boston. The new damage was blamed on water seeping into temporary power lines…”
Meanwhile, Governor Burton Cross of Maine declared a state of emergency. Six counties in Maine have been declared disaster areas by the Small Business Administration. York, Cumberland, Sagadahoc, Lincoln, Knox, and Waldo were the counties involved.
The 1954 hurricane season remained active as New England cleaned up after Carol. The same day the Miami News reported on the thunderstorms in Massachusetts, the paper also reported:
“Weather forecasters continued today to keep a close watch on an easterly wave as it approached Puerto Rico. Forecasters said the wave ‘does not look too suspicious’ at this time but added that if it shows signs of increasing, reconnaissance planes will be sent to scout it.”
This was ominous foreshadowing, as another hurricane would hit New England less than two weeks after Carol made landfall.
Comments