WEATHER VAULT: Hurricane Ivan 2004
22 years ago, an infamous and long tracked September hurricane came as El Niño conditions developed
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - Hurricane Ivan was one of multiple landfalling hurricanes in 2004, and this was as a weak El Niño was developing.
I’m First Alert Meteorologist Riley Winch, and let’s break down this infamous storm that didn’t want to give up after its first US landfall.
The three-month period from August through October 2004 saw the Niño 3.4 region average 0.6 degrees Celsius, or 1.08 degrees Fahrenheit, above normal.
September 2004 kicked off with a tropical depression developing off the coast of Africa on September 2nd.
The next day, the depression strengthened into a tropical storm, allowing Ivan to officially get its name.
By September 5th, Ivan became a Category 1 hurricane north of the coast of Brazil.
As Ivan entered the Caribbean, it grazed the island of Grenada before strengthening into a Category 4 hurricane. The island saw notable damage from the major hurricane.
As Ivan passed just offshore the northern coast of Venezuela, it strengthened into a Category 5 monster on September 9th.
Ivan fluctuated in intensity over the next 2 days before peaking as a Category 5 hurricane with winds up to 165 mph, just offshore the coast of Jamaica.
As Ivan entered the Gulf on September 14th, it weakened back to a Category 4 hurricane.
Shortly after midnight on September 16th, Ivan made landfall near Gulf Shores, Alabama as a Category 3 hurricane with winds up to 120 mph.
Ivan quickly weakened back to a tropical storm over Alabama later that day.
By the evening of September 16th, Ivan became a tropical depression near Birmingham.
Ivan dissipated into a remnant low over Virginia on September 18th, but its story was not done yet.
After tracking over Florida as a remnant low, Ivan intensified into a tropical depression, then a storm on September 22nd south of the Louisiana coast.
Ivan then dissipated on September 24th after making landfall in east Texas as a tropical depression.
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