1986 Pacific hurricane season facts for kids
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| Season summary map | |
| First storm formed | May 22, 1986 |
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| Last storm dissipated | October 22, 1986 |
| Strongest storm | Roslyn – 145 mph (230 km/h) |
| Total depressions | 26 |
| Total storms | 17 |
| Hurricanes | 9 |
| Major hurricanes (Cat. 3+) | 3 |
| Total fatalities | 2 |
| Total damage | $2 million (1986 USD) |
| Pacific hurricane seasons 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988 |
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The 1986 Pacific hurricane season was a time when many strong storms, called tropical cyclones, formed in the Pacific Ocean. It officially started on May 15, 1986, in the eastern Pacific. In the central Pacific, it began on June 1, 1986. The season ended on November 30, 1986. These dates are when most of these powerful storms usually happen in the northeastern Pacific Ocean.
What is a Hurricane Season?
A hurricane season is a period each year when tropical cyclones are most likely to form. These storms are called hurricanes in the Pacific Ocean. They are also known as typhoons in other parts of the world.
How Many Storms Formed?
The 1986 season had a bit more storms than usual. There were eight tropical storms and six hurricanes. However, there were fewer very strong hurricanes, known as major hurricanes. Only three major hurricanes formed that year.
Hurricane Agatha: An Unusual Path
On May 22, a tropical depression started to form. A tropical depression is a large, organized cloud mass that can grow into a storm. This one took an unusual path, moving southeast. By May 24, it became Tropical Storm Agatha. Agatha then turned north and became a hurricane on May 25.
Agatha weakened back into a tropical storm and then a depression. It moved along the coast of Mexico. For a short time on May 28 and 29, it became a tropical storm again before finally fading away.
Hurricane Estelle: Hawaii's Visitor
Estelle Forms and Strengthens
On July 16, a tropical depression formed. Just 12 hours later, it gained strong winds and was named Estelle. On July 18, it grew into a hurricane. Estelle kept getting stronger. On July 20, it became the first major hurricane of the season. Major hurricanes are very powerful storms.
Estelle started moving faster, heading towards the Big Island of Hawaii. It began to weaken as it got closer to Hawaii. This was because of strong winds high up in the atmosphere. Estelle did not turn away as some storms do. Instead, it continued its path toward the Hawaiian Islands.
Estelle's Impact on Hawaii
The hurricane then turned west and passed south of the islands. Estelle weakened to a tropical storm on July 23. By July 25, it was just a tropical depression. It completely faded away two days later.
Estelle moved so fast that it carried a huge wave of water along with it. On July 22, these huge waves crashed onto the Big Island's shores. This happened during a high spring tide, which made the waves even bigger. Five homes near the beach in Vacation Land were washed away. Many other homes were badly damaged. The total cost of the damage was about 2 million US dollars in 1986.
On Maui, another island, waves washed away a dirt road between Kipahulu and Kaupo. After Estelle passed, the moisture from the storm caused heavy rain. This rain fell in the Ka'u and Puna areas of the Big Island. Even after Estelle disappeared, its moisture brought more rain and thunderstorms to the islands. Sadly, two people drowned on Oahu on July 23.
Hurricane Paine: Across Mexico and the US
A large cloud mass became a tropical depression on September 27. This was about 200 miles southwest of Guatemala. It moved along the Mexican coast and became a tropical storm on September 29. It was then about 350 miles west-southwest of Acapulco.
Paine steadily grew stronger. Its winds reached 100 miles per hour, making it a Category 2 hurricane. On the evening of October 1, Paine entered the Gulf of California. The hurricane moved faster and crossed the coast near San Jose while still a hurricane. It quickly moved across Mexico. Paine brought a lot of rain from west Texas, across Oklahoma and Kansas, and into the Mid-Mississippi Valley. There was flooding, with the worst flooding near Oklahoma City, the capital of Oklahoma.
Hurricane Roslyn: Strongest Storm of the Season
Roslyn started as a tropical disturbance near Nicaragua. On the afternoon of October 15, it became a tropical depression. The storm moved quickly to the west-northwest. Early on October 16, Roslyn became a tropical storm. By the morning of October 17, it had grown into a hurricane south of Acapulco.
Roslyn began to curve back towards land, a few hundred miles from Manzanillo. It hit Mazatlán as a hurricane on October 20. The storm's leftover moisture caused heavy rains along the Middle Texas coast. It then moved north through the Mississippi Valley, bringing light to moderate rains. After that, it spread rains across the Southern United States. You can see a map of the total rainfall from Roslyn here.
Tropical Storm Georgette: A Journey Across the Pacific
On August 3, a tropical depression formed far out in the ocean. Twelve hours later, it became Tropical Storm Georgette. But it weakened back to a depression just six hours after that. Then, it started moving very, very fast, at speeds of 20 to 39 knots.
Because it was moving so fast, Georgette could not stay together as a strong storm. It turned into a non-cyclonic disturbance. This disturbance kept moving quickly. It crossed the dateline and entered the western Pacific Ocean.
Five days later, Georgette reformed into a depression in the western Pacific. It kept its name, which is common when a storm reforms. It eventually grew into a minimal typhoon. A typhoon is what a hurricane is called in the western Pacific. Georgette then interacted with another typhoon and eventually faded away.
1986 Storm Names
The names below were used for storms that formed in the eastern Pacific in 1986. No names were removed from the list, so they were used again in the 1992 season. This is the same list that was used for the 1980 season. The names Orlene, Paine, and Roslyn were used for the first time in 1986. No names from the central Pacific list were used that year. The first name that would have been used there was Oka. Names that were not used are shown in gray.
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