Tom,
Is it possible for a hurricane to travel from the Gulf of Mexico up the Mississippi River?
— Lea Thom
Dear Lea,
Since 1851 (as far back as records go), there have been no hurricanes that have moved intact directly up the Mississippi River and into the Midwest. Hurricanes lose their most powerful winds as they move off the warm tropical ocean waters that have fueled them, but several hurricane remnants have moved north through the Mississippi Valley and had an effect on Chicago’s weather. One memorable storm in 1961, Hurricane Carla, made landfall on the Texas Gulf Coast on Sept. 12, then tracked north into Oklahoma before turning northeast, crossing the Mississippi River near St. Louis and passing just south of Chicago on Sept. 14. Carla’s remnants brought more than 21/2 inches of rain and wind gusts to 49 mph.
