Historical record — not a forecast
Lake Charles
Lake Charles, LA has had 33 storms pass within 75 km since 1851, the strongest being Laura (2020, Category 4 Hurricane).
Location 01
Lake Charles
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The historical record
Storm history
33 tropical storms and hurricanes have passed within 75 km of Lake Charles since 1851, based on NOAA’s HURDAT2 best-track data (1851-2025). Atlantic storm counts before the mid-20th century undercount storms that stayed at sea; aircraft reconnaissance began in the 1940s and systematic satellite coverage in 1966. Storms that struck populated coastline are the most reliably recorded part of the record.
By storm category
- Tropical Depression
- 8
- Tropical Storm
- 15
- Category 1 Hurricane
- 3
- Category 2 Hurricane
- 2
- Category 3 Hurricane
- 4
- Category 4 Hurricane
- 1
By decade
- 1860s
- 2
- 1870s
- 1
- 1880s
- 3
- 1890s
- 1
- 1900s
- 1
- 1910s
- 2
- 1920s
- 1
- 1930s
- 1
- 1940s
- 1
- 1950s
- 3
- 1970s
- 3
- 1980s
- 3
- 2000s
- 4
- 2010s
- 3
- 2020s
- 4
Strongest & most recent
- Strongest on record
- Laura (2020, Category 4 Hurricane, 130 kt) passed within 45.2 km in 2020
- Most recent
- Nicholas (2021, Tropical Depression, 30 kt) passed within 15.5 km in 2021
- Coordinates
- 30.19902, -93.21084
- Basin
- atlantic
Notable storms on record
- Laura (2020) — Category 4 Hurricane, 130 kt, passed within 45.2 km on 2020-08-27
- Audrey (1957) — Category 3 Hurricane, 110 kt, passed within 52.5 km on 1957-06-27
- Unnamed storm (1918) — Category 3 Hurricane, 105 kt, passed within 44.4 km on 1918-08-06
- Unnamed storm (1886) — Category 3 Hurricane, 105 kt, passed within 39.0 km on 1886-10-13
- Rita (2005) — Category 3 Hurricane, 100 kt, passed within 72.8 km on 2005-09-24
- Unnamed storm (1865) — Category 2 Hurricane, 90 kt, passed within 35.6 km on 1865-09-14
- Delta (2020) — Category 2 Hurricane, 85 kt, passed within 31.9 km on 2020-10-10
- Danny (1985) — Category 1 Hurricane, 70 kt, passed within 53.9 km on 1985-08-15
Historical return intervals
These are plain historical averages — years of record divided by how many times a storm of that strength has passed within 75 km. They are not a probability or a forecast of a future storm; they describe how often storms of each strength have occurred in the past.
- Tropical storm strength or greater
- on average every 7.0 years, historically
- Hurricane strength
- on average every 17.5 years, historically
- Major hurricane (Cat 3+)
- on average every 35.0 years, historically
How many hurricanes and storms have hit near Lake Charles?
Since 1851, 33 tropical storms and hurricanes have passed within 75 km of Lake Charles, LA, based on NOAA HURDAT2 best-track data.
What was the strongest storm to affect Lake Charles?
Laura (2020, Category 4 Hurricane, 130 kt) passed within 45.2 km in 2020, reaching Category 4 Hurricane strength.
Is this a hurricane forecast for Lake Charles?
No. This page presents only historical, already-occurred storm data. It contains no forecast, prediction, or safety or evacuation guidance. Return-interval figures above are historical averages, not a probability of a future storm. See our methodology.
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