2024 hurricane season ends after record-breaking storms, unprecedented destruction

The Atlantic hurricane season officially ended on Saturday, Nov. 30. It was a season that left its mark in the record books in many ways, including the earliest Category 5 on record and a catastrophic storm that changed the landscape of North Carolina forever.

As early as February, the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season looked poised to be disastrous, with AccuWeather ringing the alarm bells and warning of the escalating tropical concerns, including the risk of storms rapidly intensifying shortly before landfall. These warnings came to fruition, including catastrophic Hurricane Helene, which reshaped the landscape of western North Carolina hundreds of miles away from where the storm made landfall.

History was made when Hurricane Beryl erupted in the Caribbean, becoming the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record in the Atlantic basin on July 1, with winds reaching 165 mph. By July 8, Beryl had struck Texas as a Category 1 hurricane, causing widespread power outages that affected nearly 3 million electric customers. In the Houston area, some residents remained without power for more than a week.

Category 5 Hurricane Beryl early on the morning of July 2, 2024.

The deadliest and most devastating hurricane of the season by far was Helene, which made landfall in Florida as a monstrous Category 4 hurricane on Sept. 26. However, its infamous legacy will be the scar it left on the southern Appalachians.

Helene unloaded 42 trillion gallons of rain over the Southeast, which sparked unprecedented flooding that washed away entire buildings and dramatically changed the landscape of some mountain towns. Over 200 fatalities have been confirmed, making it the second-deadliest hurricane in half a century, behind only Hurricane Katrina.

Less than two weeks later, Hurricane Milton plowed into Florida's Gulf Coast just south of Tampa as a Category 3 storm. The track of the hurricane spared North Carolina and Tennessee from another tropical deluge in the wake of Helene, but it diverted vital resources to help the millions in Florida who faced extensive flooding, storm surge and destructive winds.

The 2024 Atlantic hurricane season was supercharged by almost every measure, with 18 named storms, 11 hurricanes and five major hurricanes. Since 1990, the typical hurricane season has had 14 named storms, seven hurricanes and three major hurricanes. The above-average numbers are even more staggering considering there was a historic lull in tropical activity leading up to the peak of the season.

"This has been a tremendously expensive and devastating hurricane season," AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jon Porter said. "The 2024 hurricane season will be remembered for shattering records and causing approximately $500 billion in total damage and economic loss."

The five hurricane landfalls in 2024 are tied for the fourth-most on record dating back to the 1800s. Additionally, an unnamed tropical rainstorm made landfall in North Carolina in mid-September.

Four of the five landfalling hurricanes were also prolific tornado producers. Beryl, Debby, Helene and Milton spun up 173 of the 178 tornadoes generated during the hurricane season, adding to the destruction caused by each storm.

As Beryl charged inland, it prompted 201 tornado warnings to be issued, which broke the record for the most tornado warnings ever issued on a single day in July. However, the storm did not come close to generating as many tornadoes as Hurricane Ivan did in 2004, when 120 tornadoes touched down.

Another way to measure the hurricane season is to analyze each storm's power output, which meteorologists refer to as accumulated cyclone energy (ACE). The ACE of an entire hurricane season is typically around 123, according to the historical average. Due to the number of powerful hurricanes, including long-lived storms like Ernesto and Kirk, the ACE for the 2024 season is 161.6, higher than any of the past three hurricane seasons.

One of the most critical hurricane forecasts of the year took place in September when, nearly one week before Helene made landfall, AccuWeather hurricane experts said it "would be highly impactful and one of the ways this hurricane season would be remembered." As Helene gained strength, as part of AccuWeather's ongoing mission to save lives and protect property, forecasters warned it would evolve into a "once-in-a-generation" storm in the southern Appalachians where it would have catastrophic impacts and cause significant damage to infrastructure.

Helene went on to cause between $225 and $250 billion in damage and economic loss, an estimate that includes the projected costs of repairing or completely rebuilding infrastructure, such as power substations and water treatment plants that were destroyed. It will go down as one of the most damaging hurricanes in U.S. history, only after Katrina which caused $320 billion in damage.

Debris is seen in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Asheville, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Earlier in September, another storm was brewing just off the East Coast of the United States. AccuWeather dubbed it a tropical rainstorm to raise public awareness of the escalating flood threat it posed to North Carolina.

The storm, which was never given an official name, unloaded over 20 inches of rain in southeastern North Carolina, where a "1,000-year rain event" unfolded. AccuWeather estimates that the unnamed tropical rainstorm caused at least $7 billion in damage and economic loss.

One of the most far-reaching storms of the season was Hurricane Debby, which made landfall in Florida as a Category 1 near the Big Bend of Florida on Aug. 5. However, AccuWeather meteorologists were the first known source to predict Debby would make landfall along the Florida Gulf Coast and identified Debby's potential impact along the entire eastern U.S., prompting forecasters to rate the hurricane as a 3 on AccuWeather's RealImpact™ Scale. The scale is based on a multitude of factors, including storm surge, flood potential, wind and economic damage and loss, unlike the Saffir-Simpson scale, which only accounts for winds.

A mobile home swept from its foundation is seen lodged about 1,000 feet away from the property where it stood near a bridge on the Canisteo River, Friday, Aug. 9, 2024, in Canisteo, N.Y., after Debby swept through the area. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)

Intense rain from Debby prompted flash flood emergencies in New York and Pennsylvania, nearly 1,000 miles away from where it made landfall in Florida. The tropical deluge across the interior Northeast caused rivers to jump out of their banks, and emergency responders needed helicopters to rescue people who were stranded due to flooding. Debby also spawned multiple tornadoes and caused $28 billion in damage and economic loss from Florida through the Northeast.