2007 North Atlantic hurricane season
Hurricane Felix 2007
Felix grew from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane during a short passage across the Caribbean. It regained its highest category just before striking Nicaragua's Mosquito Coast.
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173 mph
Sep 3, 2007 during the tropical stage
Full archive record, including non-tropical stages if present
Along the recorded center positions
STORM HISTORY
Rapid growth in the Caribbean
Felix developed from a tropical wave on August 31 and passed through the southern Windward Islands on September 1. It became a hurricane the next day, then intensified rapidly. Archived sustained winds reached 150 knots early on September 3.
The hurricane's small inner core produced severe conditions for reconnaissance aircraft, including strong turbulence and graupel that forced one mission to withdraw. An eyewall replacement cycle briefly reduced Felix to Category 4, but it strengthened again before reaching Central America.
A Category 5 coastal strike
Felix made landfall on September 4 just south of the Nicaragua-Honduras border. The archive records 140-knot winds at the coast. The hurricane weakened quickly inland, becoming a depression over southern Honduras on September 5 as its remnants spread across Central America.
The saved account attributes 133 deaths to Felix, including three indirect deaths, and estimates damage at US$720 million in 2007 dollars. The hurricane's name was retired after the season.
IMPACT
Reported impact
| Areas affected | Honduras |
|---|
Facts from Wikidata.
Further reading
NOAA IBTrACS v04r01 historical track archive
Official report (PDF) — National Hurricane Center, Tropical Cyclone Report.
QUICK ANSWERS
Felix in brief
What was Hurricane Felix's highest wind speed?
173 mph, the highest one-minute sustained wind in its tropical stage, recorded on Sep 3, 2007, 12:00 AM UTC.
What category was Hurricane Felix?
Category 5 at its peak on the Saffir–Simpson one-minute wind scale, first reaching Category 5 on Sep 3, 2007, 12:00 AM UTC. Other agencies classify storms differently.
What was Hurricane Felix's lowest pressure?
929 mb, the minimum central pressure recorded during its tropical stage, on Sep 3, 2007, 07:00 AM UTC.
When did Hurricane Felix occur?
The archived track runs from Aug 31, 2007, 12:00 PM UTC to Sep 6, 2007, 06:00 PM UTC, with the tropical stage from Aug 31, 2007, 12:00 PM UTC to Sep 5, 2007, 09:00 AM UTC.
Where did Hurricane Felix form?
In the North Atlantic basin, in the 2007 season. Its first archived position is 11.5°N, 56.6°W on Aug 31, 2007, 12:00 PM UTC.
Did Hurricane Felix make landfall?
The archive places its center over land at 1 recorded position; the strongest is 161 mph on Sep 4, 2007, 12:00 PM UTC. Positions are six-hourly, so this is not a landfall chronology.
METHODOLOGY
Data sources and limitations
The map and summary are generated from NOAA's IBTrACS v04r01 archive. Wind and category use US-agency records; minimum pressure is calculated during the tropical stage, with the archive's pressure source retained. Category 5 refers to the Saffir–Simpson one-minute wind scale; local agencies may use different classifications. Coastlines use Natural Earth's 1:10m land data.
Track distance adds great-circle distances between consecutive observations, excluding gaps over 12 hours. This track has no gaps over 12 hours. The line shows the storm's center, not its size, rainfall or flood extent. Converted wind speeds are rounded to the nearest whole unit.
Archive retrieved
NOAA IBTrACS archive and Field documentation
Sources & methodology