Climate and Storm History of Boynton Beach, Florida

Boynton Beach, a city in Palm Beach County in the southeastern part of Florida, has a tropical climate. The city’s climate makes it a residential and tourist center. Facing to the Atlantic Ocean, Boynton has a number of marinas, fishing piers, and beaches. It also has a warm and sunny atmosphere which invites many tourists from visit the place to especially during winter. For the whole year, the average temperature is 74.5 degrees. On the other hand, the average during summer temperature of Southeastern Florida ranges from 32- 34°C while in winter the temperature decreases up to 13°C.

Although the Boynton Beach is closer to the tropics, it has fewer very hot days each summer than in other cities. Additionally, it has an average monthly precipitation is above 60 millimeters (2.36 in). Snow in Florida is also a rare occurrence but in January 19, 1977, a very uncommon phenomenon happen when snow fell over much of the state.

However, Boynton’s natural treasures are frequently attacked by hurricanes. Surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean Sea, hurricanes frequently strike Florida. These hurricanes bring strong winds, heavy rains, and high seas which causes tremendous damage to infrastructures, properties, and even lives. It usually occurs during June 1 to November 30, although others come off these months. Based on the records, over 114 hurricanes, 37 of them major have hit Florida from 1851 to 2006. Almost 83% of the major hurricanes in the United States have struck the state. In fact, since 1851, the Sunshine state have experience a hurricane-free year for only eighteen hurricane seasons. The first recorded tropical cyclone to affect Florida occurred in 1523, when two ships and their crews were lost along the western coastline. In 1935, the Labor Day Hurricane, the strongest hurricane recorded in the United States, strike Florida with a pressure of 892 mbar (hPa; 26.35 inHg). Subsequently, during 1950 to 1974, about 85 cyclones have smashed the state which resulted to $6.2 billion in damage. In this period, the hurricanes named Donna and Dora were the most devastating. Other major cyclones that have hit Boynton are Hurricane Easy, Cleo, Betsy, King, and Isbell. Moreover, from 1975 to 1999, over 83 tropical/subtropical cyclones hit the state which resulted about $45 billion in damage. 54 casualties were also recorded. The most destructive of all these hurricanes is the Hurricane Andrew that hit during 1992 which remains as the second costliest hurricane of all times.

hurricane Andrew

Other major hurricanes recorded in this period are Hurricanes Eloise, David, and Opal. Lastly, from 2000 to present, as of 2007, 58 tropical/subtropical cyclones affected the state of Florida. As an effect, the total damage of the storm was $64 billion. In the same period, Hurricane Charley, the strongest hurricane in the United States devastated Florida. Other major storms are hurricanes Jeanne, Ivan, Dennis, and Wilma. In fact, Hurricane Wilma struck Boynton Beach on Monday, October 24, 2005, causing widespread damage to homes and businesses.

Damages made by Hurricane Dennis