Historical record — not a forecast

Westerly

Westerly, RI has had 29 storms pass within 75 km since 1851, the strongest being an unnamed storm (1869, Category 3 Hurricane).

RI29 storms since 18516 at hurricane strength or higher2 major (Cat 3+)
Noir atlas

Location 01

Westerly

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The historical record

Storm history

29 tropical storms and hurricanes have passed within 75 km of Westerly 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
4
Tropical Storm
19
Category 1 Hurricane
2
Category 2 Hurricane
2
Category 3 Hurricane
2

By decade

1850s
2
1860s
2
1870s
1
1880s
3
1890s
2
1900s
2
1910s
3
1930s
2
1940s
1
1950s
2
1960s
1
1980s
1
1990s
2
2000s
3
2020s
2

Strongest & most recent

Strongest on record
an unnamed storm (1869, Category 3 Hurricane, 100 kt) passed within 9.4 km in 1869
Most recent
Henri (2021, Tropical Storm, 55 kt) passed within 8.2 km in 2021
Coordinates
41.37330, -71.80678
Basin
atlantic

Notable storms on record

  • Carol (1954) Category 3 Hurricane, 100 kt, passed within 18.1 km on 1954-08-31
  • Unnamed storm (1869) Category 3 Hurricane, 100 kt, passed within 9.4 km on 1869-09-08
  • Bob (1991) Category 2 Hurricane, 90 kt, passed within 25.9 km on 1991-08-19
  • Unnamed storm (1944) Category 2 Hurricane, 90 kt, passed within 17.5 km on 1944-09-15
  • Donna (1960) Category 1 Hurricane, 80 kt, passed within 50.2 km on 1960-09-12
  • Unnamed storm (1858) Category 1 Hurricane, 80 kt, passed within 16.4 km on 1858-09-16
  • Unnamed storm (1916) Tropical Storm, 60 kt, passed within 45.6 km on 1916-07-21
  • Unnamed storm (1861) Tropical Storm, 60 kt, passed within 25.1 km on 1861-11-03

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 29.2 years, historically
Major hurricane (Cat 3+)
on average every 87.5 years, historically
How many hurricanes and storms have hit near Westerly?

Since 1851, 29 tropical storms and hurricanes have passed within 75 km of Westerly, RI, based on NOAA HURDAT2 best-track data.

What was the strongest storm to affect Westerly?

an unnamed storm (1869, Category 3 Hurricane, 100 kt) passed within 9.4 km in 1869, reaching Category 3 Hurricane strength.

Is this a hurricane forecast for Westerly?

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.

Nearby places

More coastal places in RI