1932 — Sep 26-27, San Ciprian Hurricane, Puerto Rico — 257

–257 Beverly, James R. (Governor of PR). Puerto Rico in the Great Depression. 7-1-1933.
–225 Weather Bureau. “West Indian Hurricanes of [Aug-Sep], 1932.” MWR, 60/9, Sep 1932, p.179.

Narrative Information

Weather Bureau: “SAN CIPR1AN”-HURRICANE OF SEPTEMBER 26-27, 1932. {Weather Bureau Office, San Juan, Puerto Rico}.

“Trajectory.–With extraordinarily high pressure prevailing over the entire Atlantic and the eastern half of the continent, this storm departed from a normal course and traveled slightly north of west from near St. Barthelemy to Puerto Rico, thence slightly south of west in almost a direct line to the coast of Yucatan south of Belize.

“Statistics.–The vortex entered the Island of Puerto Rico near Ceiba at 10 p. m. of September 26, probably directly over the harbor of Ensenada Honda, where the steamers Jean and Acacia had taken refuge. The former reported 27.70 inches and the latter 28 inches as the low pressure, with a diametric windshift and brief lull. The vortex passed a short distance south of San Juan (28.95
inches at 1 a. m.) and left the island near Aguadilla about 5:30 a. m. of the 27th. The maximum wind velocity at San Juan is estimated at not less than 120 miles per hour. Unfortunately, the wind-instrument tower, an old one already in course of replacement, was blown down at 12:08 a.m., when the record was 66 miles per hour from the northeast. Rainfall was not unusually heavy compared with that during other visitations of this character.

“Information.–The first information received at San Juan was from Antigua on the morning of the 26th, indicating that a moderate disturbance had passed there about 3 a. m. The news that St. Barthelemy was near the vortex with a pressure of 29.65 inches and an estimated velocity of 60 to 90 miles per hour was received by mail a week later. Current reports at 8 a. m. of the 26th located the vortex as having passed between St. Kitts and St. Martin. By evening the reports indicated that the vortex was passing between St. Thomas and St. Croix….

“Losses.–Many lives were lost from collapse of buildings which were supposed to be safe; some from flying debris, some from drowning, the loss from the first cause being by far the greatest. As usual; first reports of loss of life were wildly exaggerated, but it would be difficult to exaggerate the effect of the storm on buildings. Only the heaviest construction of masonry and concrete, with cemented tile roofs, came out of the zone of heavy damage unscathed. Concrete walls with ‘lean’ mixtures or too widely spaced reinforcement and with roofs improperly or poorly anchored were wrecked, in many cases with appalling loss of life…common corrugated iron roofs, put on with smooth or even twisted nails, were carried off like so much cardboard. This material, put on with bolts and nuts over a properly anchored frame, in many cases remained intact. Casualties were 225 dead and 3,000 more or less injured. Property damage, including crops, will total near $30,000,000. The temporarily homeless were variously estimated from 75,000 up to near a quarter of a. million, but these latter figures are somewhat mitigated by the fact that a considerable percentage live in comparatively crude shelters which are quickly replaced. Of crop losses the greatest percentage was citrus, as the citrus belt is almost wholly within the zone of heavy damage. Minor crops were generally a total loss, but they do not represent more than the loss of a single season, whereas citrus and coffee are set back by the loss of much tree growth which will take years to replace. The coffee belt was not all included in the zone of heavy or even moderate damage, but a contributing cause to heavier damage to that industry was the loss of their temporary shade, for which since San Felipe (September 13, 1928) banana plantings had been utilized. Moderate winds will wreck a banana or plantain planting and the heavy stems in falling break the young coffee trees. Sugarcane, in percentage, was probably least injured because, unless actually washed out of the ground by overflow, the canes will continue to grow and will mature. Sugar’s greatest damage was to buildings and equipment.

“Moderate damage was done on St. Barthelemy, on Tortola, also on St. Thomas and St. John of the United States Virgin Islands. St. Croix reports no damage. Culebra and Vieques, important islands off the east coast of Puerto Rico both suffered heavily; their figures are included in the losses for Puerto Rico….” (Weather Bureau. “West Indian Hurricanes of August and September, 1932.” Monthly Weather Review, Vol. 60, Issue 9, September 1932, pp. 177-179.)

Sources

Beverly, James R. Puerto Rico in the Great Depression (Thirty-Third Annual Report of the Governor of Puerto Rico 1933 (Excerpts). 7-1-1933. Accessed 9-21-2022 at: https://web.archive.org/web/20010707074924/http://newdeal.feri.org/pr/pr12.htm

Weather Bureau. “West Indian Hurricanes of August and September, 1932.” Monthly Weather Review, Vol. 60, Issue 9, September 1932, pp. 177-179. Accessed 9-21-2022 at: https://journals.ametsoc.org/view/journals/mwre/60/9/1520-0493_1932_60_177_ttsoai_2_0_co_2.xml