1978 Pacific hurricane season

New names and a busy year without El Niño

1978 was the first eastern Pacific season with both male and female names, and the first to use the six-year rotating lists still in place. Most names were new; Aletta, Carlotta, Iva and Olivia carried over from the old lists. The season ran busy without an El Niño, the usual driver of extra activity in the eastern and central Pacific.

The current best track counts 19 named storms, 14 hurricanes and 7 major hurricanes. The site reaches 19, 14 and 8 through a different list. It includes Rita, whose track begins in the central Pacific on 15 October, and leaves out Hurricane Olivia, the Pacific continuation of Atlantic Hurricane Greta. Accumulated cyclone energy in the site's archive calculation reached 253.8. The Central Pacific Hurricane Center tracked 13 tropical cyclones or their remnants, then a record.

Aletta, Carlotta and Daniel

Hurricane Aletta formed on 30 May, showed an eye within hours, and became the first hurricane before weakening and coming ashore about 50 miles west of Zihuatanejo on 31 May. In June, Hurricane Carlotta became the first major hurricane and peaked at 115 kt on 21 June, and Hurricane Daniel reached 100 kt on 30 June. Both weakened over cooler water, and their remnants crossed Hawaii: Carlotta's dropped more than 6 inches of rain, mostly on Oahu, and Daniel's brought 5 to 7 inches to the Big Island and Maui.

Fico and the summer procession

Hurricane Fico formed from a tropical wave on 9 July, became a hurricane the next day and peaked at 120 kt on 12 July. A pocket of cooler water knocked it down to Category 1 on 13 and 14 July, but it regained Category 4 strength and fluctuated for days as it crossed into the central Pacific south of Hawaii. It dissipated after 28 July, having traveled about 6,645 miles, and at 516 recorded hours it was by far the longest-tracked storm of the season.

Fico's swells flooded beach roads on the Big Island while the storm was still 500 miles away. Waves of 15 to 20 feet damaged beachfront homes and roads, a Navy torpedo boat rescued six people from a stranded sloop, and a tugboat ran aground off Kauai. A strengthened trade wind gradient brought winds over 60 mph by 21 July, downing trees and power. Damage in Hawaii reached $200,000 in 1978 dollars. The name Fico was retired and replaced with Fabio.

Hurricane Gilma reached 100 kt on 16 July with a cloud shield about 920 miles across. Hurricane Hector rapidly reached 120 kt on 25 July before cold water and dry air broke it down. In mid-August three disturbances formed side by side and became Hurricanes Kristy and John and Tropical Storm Lane. Kristy grew from the remains of Atlantic Hurricane Cora, and Hurricane Iva from those of Tropical Storm Bess. John, Lane and Hurricane Miriam all tracked south of Hawaii in late August.

Norman's remnants in California

Hurricane Norman formed southwest of Acapulco on 30 August, deepened fast and peaked at 120 kt on 2 September, tied with Fico and Hector. Reconnaissance found an eye 45 miles wide. Strong southwesterly winds aloft then turned it northeast into a hostile environment, and it dissipated south of San Clemente Island on 7 September.

Waves of up to 10 feet damaged ships on the California coast, and lifeguards rescued hundreds of swimmers. Norman's remnants, merged with a trough and a front, dropped up to 7.01 inches of rain and some snow on the Sierra Nevada. Eight deaths were linked to Norman: a man and his son killed when their boat crashed off Mexico, two people in rain-related traffic accidents, and four from hypothermia at high elevations. Rain destroyed 95 percent of the raisin crop, and agricultural losses exceeded $300 million in 1978 dollars.

Olivia, Paul, Susan and Rita

Atlantic Hurricane Greta crossed Central America and re-emerged in the Gulf of Tehuantepec as Tropical Storm Olivia, which became a hurricane and came ashore about 60 miles east of Salina Cruz on 22 September with winds of 60 mph. Tropical Storm Paul struck Mexico as a depression on 26 September, and its remnants closed a 20-mile stretch of Interstate 20 in Texas with high water.

In October Hurricane Susan rapidly reached 115 kt in the central Pacific, one of the strongest hurricanes on record there at the time, before wind shear turned it southwest and destroyed it. Rita's archived track starts east of the date line on 15 October. The storm moved west, became a typhoon and reached its 150 kt peak on 23 October, with its 880 mb pressure two days later, the lowest of any storm on the site's list for this season.