At a Glance

Labor Day weekend is prone to interruptions from tropical storms and hurricanes.The weekend is in what's typically the busiest part of hurricane season.The most intense U.S. hurricane in history struck on Labor Day weekend.

Labor Day weekend marks the end of the summer vacation season for many, but it also lies right in the middle of the busiest time of hurricane season, making it prone to interruptions from landfalling storms.

This year, there are no tropical storm or hurricane threats to worry about along the Atlantic or Gulf coastlines. No hurricanes have made landfall in the United States on Labor Day weekend in the past two years either, but some areas were in the early stages of cleanup efforts because of strikes by Laura (2020) and Ida (2021) several days earlier.

With this year giving us a break from punishing storms leading up to the holiday, let's look back at some historic Labor Day weekend hurricanes, beginning with the most intense one.

1935: The 'Labor Day Hurricane'

On Sept. 2, 1935, the Labor Day Hurricane made landfall in the central Florida Keys as a Category 5 storm, in the depth of the Great Depression.

It made a second landfall near Cedar Key, Florida, as a Category 2 hurricane on Sept. 4.

During the storm's lifetime, a minimum central pressure of 892.3 millibars(or 26.35 inches) was recorded at Long Key, Florida. This pressure reading makes the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane the most intense hurricane, based on pressure at landfall, of record to hit the U.S.

It is also the third most intense hurricane on record in the Atlantic Basin, behind only Hurricane Wilma in 2005 and Hurricane Gilbert in 1988. A combination of high winds and tides was responsible for 408 deaths in the Florida Keys.

More than 250 of the victims were World War I veterans working onlaying the infrastructure to make the Florida Keys accessible to tourism, vacationers and eventually residents. were caught in a failed evacuation attempt from the islands.

1950: Hurricane Easy

Track of Hurricane Easy.

Hurricane Easy paralleled the western Florida coast as a growing hurricane on Labor Day in 1950, and then completed two loops in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico in the following days. One of those loops was near the town of Cedar Key, which stayed near the eye of Easy for two and a half hours.

Winds as high as 125 mph pummeled Cedar Key and the rest of Florida's Nature Coastwhile the hurricane spun just offshore.

More than half of the houses in Cedar Key were destroyed beyond repair and 90% of the remaining homes were damaged. Manyboats were destroyed, a major blow to the community built on fishing.

More than 2 feet of rain was recorded in Cedar Key, but only two people were killed by Easy because of the low population of the Nature Coast at the time.

1952: Hurricane Able

Surface analysis of Hurricane Able.

(NOAA)

A Category 1 storm, Hurricane Able made landfall near Beaufort, South Carolina, on Aug. 31, 1952, just a few hours shy of the official Labor Day holiday.

Able produced 90-mph winds at Beaufort and drenched eastern South Carolina. Able caused two deaths and more than $3 million in damage.

1979: Hurricane David

Satellite imagery of Hurricane David as it made landfall near Savannah, Ga.

(NOAA)

Hurricane David made landfall as a Category 2 hurricane on Sept. 4, 1979, near the border of Georgia and South Carolina. David produced 100-mph winds, and the minimum central pressure was 970 millibars.

Once David moved inland, the storm spawned five tornadoes and dumped 6 to 8 inches of rain throughout South Carolina. The hurricane also caused heavy beach erosion and $10 million in damage.

1985: Hurricane Elena

Satellite imagery of Hurricane Elena just before it made landfall in the Florida Panhandle.

(NOAA)

On Sept. 2, 1985, Hurricane Elena made landfall near Biloxi, Mississippi. Wind gusts reached as high as 136 mph to the east of the landfall point on Dauphin Island, Alabama. Elena produced over a dozen tornadoes in central Florida.

In addition, more than 11 inches of rain fell in Apalachicola, Florida, and over 8 inches of rain fell in north-central Arkansas.

More than 500,000 people evacuated the low-lying coastal areas of the Gulf, and many people in the middle Gulf Coast evacuated twice. Although no deaths were reported where the center of the storm made landfall, four people died because of falling trees, automobile accidents or heart attacks. Overall, the hurricane caused $1.25 billion in damage.

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