Hurricane season in the Exumas: dates, peak and what past storms did

Anyone planning a boat trip to the Exumas between summer and early winter plans around hurricane season. The dates, averages and boating rules below come from the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) and the Bahamas Department of Meteorology. For day-to-day wind and sea conditions, see the weather windows guide, and for the wider boating picture the boating hub.

When is hurricane season in the Exumas?

The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30, and activity sometimes occurs before and after those dates¹. The NHC calls a tropical cyclone a hurricane once its maximum sustained winds reach 74 mph (64 knots), and a major hurricane at 111 mph (96 knots) or higher¹.

The NHC describes an average season, measured over 1991 to 2020¹, like this:

Milestone in an average season	When
First named storm	Mid to late June (about June 20)1
First hurricane	Early to mid-August (about August 11)1
First major hurricane	Late August or early September (about September 1)1
Peak of the season	September 101
Most activity	Mid-August to mid-October1
13th named storm	About October 251
14th named storm	About November 191

The late rows matter if you plan an autumn passage. By the beginning of September an average year has produced four named systems, but the average count reaches 14 only in the third week of November¹. Individual seasons vary considerably from these dates¹.

How many storms does an average season bring?

An average Atlantic hurricane season has 14 named storms, 7 hurricanes and 3 major hurricanes¹. The NHC adds that by the beginning of September an average year has had four named systems, two of them hurricanes and one a Category 3 or stronger¹. A quiet count across the basin does not mean a quiet week at your anchorage, so check the forecast for the days you are on the water.

Does Exuma get hit by hurricanes?

Yes. Hurricane Joaquin reached Category 4 in October 2015, and its winds and storm surge devastated Crooked Island, Acklins, Long Island, Rum Cay and San Salvador². The NHC calls it the strongest October hurricane known to have affected the Bahamas since 1866². It strengthened fast: a 60-hour period of rapid intensification began on 29 September².

For the Exumas, the NHC’s report says sustained hurricane-force winds likely affected the southern Exumas, and sustained tropical-storm-force winds affected the rest of the chain². Its damage summary for Exuma lists extreme flooding and downed power lines². Storm surge reached 12 to 15 feet on Rum Cay, Crooked Island and Acklins, according to the Bahamas Department of Meteorology². Damage in the Bahamas was estimated at well over $60 million².

Joaquin also shows what the sea does to ships. It took 34 lives, all at sea, including the 33 crew of the cargo ship El Faro². The lesson for a private boat is the one the NHC gives mariners: there is no single rule of thumb for staying safe from a hurricane, only constant monitoring and repeated risk analysis³.

What does the National Hurricane Center tell boaters to do?

The NHC’s marine safety page sets out rules that apply to a boat in the Exumas as much as to a ship.

NHC guidance: “avoiding the 34 KT wind field of a hurricane is paramount” for vessels at sea³.

• Update your plan with every advisory. When a system is active the NHC issues four forecast/advisory messages a day, and the risk analysis should be redone with each one³.
• Use the 1-2-3 rule. Allow a 100-mile error radius on the 24-hour forecast, 200 miles at 48 hours and 300 miles at 72 hours³.
• Never cross the track. The NHC says never to plan to cross the “T” of a hurricane³.
• Keep a second option. Never leave yourself with only a single navigation option³.
• Decide early. The decision to leave port must be made very early, because vessels that made the right decision too late were still damaged or lost³.

Is a dock or marina safe in a storm?

Not automatically. The NHC warns that storm surge can lift a vessel out of a protected wind and wave regime into water exposed to far stronger winds and waves³. Many Caribbean docks are fixed, built for a small tidal range, and can be submerged by even minimal hurricane surge³. Line strain climbs quickly too: the force on a moored vessel nearly doubles for every 15 knots of wind between tropical storm force (34 knots) and hurricane force (64 knots)³.

How do you follow a storm?

The NHC publishes forecasts and advisories at nhc.noaa.gov³. The Bahamas Department of Meteorology carries a Hurricanes/Tropical Storms page and the marine forecast at met.gov.bs⁴. For radio contacts on the water, see the VHF channels guide.

If you are choosing a month rather than a boat plan, the best time to visit the Exumas page sets hurricane season against the rest of the year.