Timeline of the 1996 Pacific hurricane season

Timeline of the
1996 Pacific hurricane season
Season summary map
Season boundaries
First system formedMay 13, 1996
Last system dissipatedNovember 11, 1996
Strongest system
NameDouglas
Maximum winds130 mph (215 km/h)
(1-minute sustained)
Lowest pressure946 mbar (hPa; 27.94 inHg)
Longest lasting system
NameGenevieve
Duration11.25 days
Storm articles

The 1996 Pacific hurricane season consisted of the events that occurred in the annual cycle of tropical cyclone formation over the Pacific Ocean north of the equator and east of the International Date Line. The official bounds of each Pacific hurricane season are dates that conventionally delineate the period each year during which tropical cyclones tend to form in the basin according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC), beginning on May 15 in the Eastern Pacific proper (east of 140°W) and June 1 in the Central Pacific (140°W to the International Date Line), and ending on November 30 in both areas. However, tropical cyclogenesis is possible at any time of year, as demonstrated by the formation of an unnamed tropical storm two days before the season officially began.[1][2] Activity during the season was below average;[nb 1] fifteen tropical depressions developed, of which only nine strengthened into named tropical storms. Five became hurricanes, of which two further intensified into major hurricanes.[nb 2][3] The number of tropical storms were below average; the number of hurricanes were below average, and the number of major hurricanes was half the average of four.[4] Two tropical depressions existed in the Central Pacific in 1996: Tropical Depression Seventeen-W crossed over from the Northwest Pacific, while Tropical Depression One-C formed in the Central Pacific.[5] Activity during the season ceased with the dissipation of Tropical Depression Twelve-E on November 11.

Much of the season's activity was clustered near the coast of Southwest Mexico, with four hurricanes and one tropical storm making landfall along it. The most impactful were: Hurricane Alma, which was responsible for 20 deaths, and Hurricane Fausto, which left behind damage amounting to around $800,000 (1996 USD).[6][7] Hurricane Douglas was the strongest storm of the season, reaching Category 4 intensity on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. Douglas developed in the Caribbean Sea, within the Atlantic Ocean, as Hurricane Cesar, before crossing into the Pacific as a tropical storm.[8] This was the second season on record in which there were two crossovers systens, after 1988 (Debby and Joan).[9]

This timeline documents tropical cyclone formations, strengthening, weakening, landfalls, extratropical transitions, and dissipations during the season. It includes information that was not released during the season, meaning that data from post-storm reviews by the National Hurricane Center and the Central Pacific Hurricane Center, such as a storm that was not initially warned upon, has been included. The time stamp for each event is first stated using Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), the 24-hour clock where 00:00 = midnight UTC.[10] The NHC uses both UTC and the time zone where the center of the tropical cyclone was then located. Prior to 2015, two time zones were utilized in the Eastern Pacific basin: Pacific for the Eastern Pacific, and Hawaii−Aleutian for the Central Pacific.[11][12] In this timeline, the respective area time is included in parentheses. Additionally, figures for maximum sustained winds and position estimates are rounded to the nearest 5 units (miles, or kilometers), following National Hurricane Center practice. Direct wind observations are rounded to the nearest whole number. Atmospheric pressures are listed to the nearest millibar and nearest hundredth of an inch of mercury.

Timeline of events

May

May 13

May 14

May 15

May 16

May 19

June

June 1

  • The 1996 Central Pacific hurricane season officially begins.[1]

June 20

June 22

June 23

June 24

June 25

June 27

June 28

June 29

June 30

July

July 1

July 2

July 3

July 4

July 5

July 6

July 29

July 30

July 31

August

August 1

August 2

August 3

August 5

August 6

August 14

August 15

August 24

August 25

August 30

September

September 2

September 4

September 5

September 6

September 10

September 11

September 12

September 13

September 14

September 16

September 20

September 27

September 28

September 29

September 30

October

October 1

October 2

October 3

October 4

October 6

October 8

October 9

November

November 7

November 8

November 11

November 30

  • The 1996 Pacific hurricane season officially ends.[1]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ During the period from 1991 to 2020, an average Pacific hurricane season generated fifteen tropical storms, eight hurricanes, and four major hurricanes.[1]
  2. ^ A major hurricane is a Pacific or Atlantic hurricane that reaches Category 3 or higher on the five-level Saffir–Simpson scale, with maximum sustained winds of at least 111 mph (179 km/h).[1]
  3. ^ Operationally, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) assessed One-E to have remained a tropical depression, and so did not assign it a name. Later in the season, the NHC retroactively upgraded the cyclone to a tropical storm.[13]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Tropical Cyclone Climatology". Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived from the original on April 1, 2024. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
  2. ^ "About the Central Pacific Hurricane Center". Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Retrieved January 20, 2026.
  3. ^ National Hurricane Center; Hurricane Research Division; Central Pacific Hurricane Center (April 26, 2024). "The Northeast and North Central Pacific hurricane database 1949–2023". United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Weather Service. Archived from the original on May 29, 2024. A guide on how to read the database is available here. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  4. ^ Mayfield, Britt M.; Avila, Edward N. (December 1, 1998). "Eastern North Pacific Hurricane Season of 1996". Monthly Weather Review. 126 (12). American Meteorological Society: 3068–3076. Bibcode:1998MWRv..126.3068M. doi:10.1175/1520-0493(1998)126<3068:ENPHSO>2.0.CO;2. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Central Pacific Hurricane Center Tropical Cyclone Report Tropical Cyclones 1996 (PDF) (Report). Honolulu, Hawaii: Central Pacific Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 18, 2025. Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Avila, Lixion A. (July 24, 1996). Preliminary Report: Hurricane Alma (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 30, 2025. Retrieved December 29, 2025.
  7. ^ "CICESE — La Paz: de proyecto a realidad en expansión" (in Spanish). Departamento de Comunicación para el Centro de Investigación Científica y de Educación Superior de Ensenada. Archived from the original on July 22, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2007.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Avila, Lixion A. (October 24, 1996). Preliminary Report: Hurricane Douglas (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 30, 2025. Retrieved January 2, 2026.
  9. ^ Henson, Bob (October 10, 2022). "As Julia fades, floods plague Central America". New Haven, Connecticut: Yale Climate Connections. Archived from the original on October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
  10. ^ "What is UTC or GMT Time?". Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
  11. ^ "NHC Tropical Cyclone Text Product Descriptions". Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived from the original on July 10, 2024. Retrieved July 13, 2024.
  12. ^ "Update on NHC Products and Services for 2015" (PDF). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. March 26, 2015. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 28, 2023. Retrieved July 13, 2024.
  13. ^ a b c d e f Rappaport, Edward N. (November 7, 1996). Preliminary Report on Unnamed Tropical Storm (Formerly Tropical Depression One-E) (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 18, 2025. Retrieved December 22, 2025.
  14. ^ a b c Pasch, Richard J. (June 5, 1996). Brief Information About Tropical Depression Two-E (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 18, 2025. Retrieved December 27, 2025.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h Lawrence, Miles B. (August 15, 1996). Preliminary Report: Hurricane Boris (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 30, 2025. Retrieved January 1, 2026.
  16. ^ a b c d e Mayfield, Max (August 11, 1996). Preliminary Report: Tropical Storm Cristina (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 30, 2025. Retrieved January 1, 2026.
  17. ^ a b c Best Track, Tropical Depression Six-E, 4–6 July 1996 (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 30, 2025. Retrieved January 1, 2026.
  18. ^ a b Rappaport, Edward N. (October 3, 1996). Preliminary Report: Hurricane Dolly (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 21, 2025. Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  19. ^ a b c d e f Rappaport, Edward N. (November 7, 1996). Preliminary Report: Tropical Storm Elida (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 30, 2025. Retrieved January 2, 2026.
  20. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Lawrence, Miles B. (October 12, 1996). Preliminary Report: Hurricane Fausto (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 27, 2025. Retrieved January 5, 2026.
  21. ^ a b c d e f g h Mayfield, Max (November 7, 1996). Preliminary Report: Tropical Storm Genevieve (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 27, 2025. Retrieved January 5, 2026.
  22. ^ a b c d e f g h Pasch, Richard J. (January 17, 1997). Preliminary Report: Hurricane Hernan (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 27, 2025. Retrieved January 5, 2026.
  23. ^ a b c Rappaport, Edward N. (November 13, 1996). Track data on Tropical Depression Twelve-E (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 21, 2025. Retrieved January 5, 2026.
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