On October 15, 1954, Hurricane Hazel made landfall at Long Beach.
The storm's arrival in North Carolina occurred on a full moon high tide, maximizing impact of the storm surge on the barrier beaches of Sunset Beach, Ocean Isle, Holden Beach, Long Beach, Carolina Beach, Wrightsville Beach and Topsail Island.
Devastation was widespread but nowhere was the impact more severe than on what's now Oak Island, where a 17-foot storm surge swept away 352 of the island's 357 structures. The dramatic surge was, and remains, singular in North Carolina's recorded history.
Hazel was the only Category Four hurricane of the 20th century to strike North Carolina. Its winds topped 140 miles per hour. After landfall it tracked inland, and battering winds cut a wide swath northward toward Raleigh. High winds toppled trees, ripped roofs and tore down signs and power lines across the state.
Hazel was responsible for 95 deaths in the U.S., including 19 in North Carolina. Hazel remains the standard by which other North Carolina hurricanes are measured.
*This Day in North Carolina History is a production of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.*
For more about North Carolina's history, arts, nature and culture, visit Cultural Resources online at www.ncdcr.gov. For more stories like this, visithttp://www.ncdcr.gov/thisdaync
Other related content:
- Hurricanes on NCpedia
- A guide to resources related to weather from the State Library
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