No active hurricanes threatening Babylon right now

Could the next one hit soon? 126 hurricanes have impacted the Babylon area since 1851 — set up free alerts so you'll have time to prepare when one's on the way.

126
Hurricanes affecting Babylon area
2021
Most recent
140 kt
Strongest peak winds
3 mi
Closest approach
Local note: Sited on the south shore of Long Island with low-lying coastal neighborhoods, Babylon's greatest hurricane threat is storm surge and coastal flooding from storms approaching the Long Island coastline — recent impacts from Hurricane Ida (2021) highlighted destructive surge and tidal flooding in the region.

Coverage on this page applies broadly to the Babylon area — including Lindenhurst, Copiague, West Islip, West Babylon, Amityville, North Babylon, Massapequa Park, Brightwaters. Tropical storms rarely respect city limits.

When do hurricanes typically threaten the Babylon area?

Distribution of 126 hurricanes that have come within 150 mi of Babylon, by month of closest approach.

J
F
M
A
3 M
13 J
8 J
33 A
42 S
24 O
3 N
D

Recent notable storms affecting the Babylon area

Year Name Peak Cat Peak Winds Closest Approach
2021 ELSA Cat 1 75 kt 26 mi
2021 IDA Cat 4 130 kt 28 mi
2021 HENRI Cat 1 65 kt 62 mi
2020 ISAIAS Cat 1 80 kt 95 mi
2020 ZETA Cat 3 100 kt 116 mi
2018 FLORENCE Cat 4 130 kt 108 mi
2018 MICHAEL Cat 5 140 kt 179 mi
2016 HERMINE Cat 1 70 kt 95 mi
2014 ARTHUR Cat 2 85 kt 162 mi
2012 SANDY Cat 3 100 kt 100 mi
2011 IRENE Cat 3 105 kt 36 mi
2010 EARL Cat 4 125 kt 179 mi
2008 HANNA Cat 1 75 kt 76 mi
2006 ERNESTO Cat 1 65 kt 185 mi
Hurricane-strength storms (Cat 1+) since 2006 that came within 200 miles of Babylon. Includes storms whose center stayed offshore or hit nearby cities — wind, surge, and rainfall impacts extend far beyond the storm's path.

All-time closest approaches to Babylon

Year Name Peak Cat Peak Winds Closest Approach Date of Closest
1888 UNNAMED TS 50 kt 3 mi Sep 12, 1888
1968 UNNAMED TS 55 kt 3 mi Sep 11, 1968
1985 GLORIA Cat 4 125 kt 3 mi Sep 27, 1985
1961 UNNAMED TS 60 kt 8 mi Sep 15, 1961
1999 FLOYD Cat 4 135 kt 10 mi Sep 17, 1999
1934 UNNAMED Cat 2 90 kt 15 mi Sep 09, 1934
1955 DIANE Cat 2 90 kt 18 mi Aug 19, 1955
1894 UNNAMED Cat 3 105 kt 23 mi Oct 10, 1894
1938 UNNAMED Cat 5 140 kt 23 mi Sep 21, 1938
1960 DONNA Cat 4 125 kt 23 mi Sep 12, 1960
Showing the 10 closest of 126 total storms within 150 mi of Babylon since 1851.

If a hurricane threatens Babylon

  1. Know your evacuation zone. Look up yours by address via your state or county emergency management office (Suffolk County and surrounding areas).
  2. Set up alerts ahead of time. During an active storm, watches and warnings change every six hours. Email or text alerts from TropicalInfo give you the official NHC update the moment it's posted, with a plain-language summary.
  3. Prep your supplies before the storm is named. Stores empty out within hours of a watch. The 72-hour rule: water, food, batteries, fuel, medications, important documents. Our alerts can notify you of a storm long before it makes the news — giving you more time to get what you need before the panic-buying starts.
  4. Follow the cone, not the line. The forecast track is a best estimate — the cone shows where the center is likely to go. Impacts extend hundreds of miles from the center.

Set up free location-based alerts for Babylon

Historical data: NOAA HURDAT2 Atlantic and Eastern North Pacific hurricane databases. Closest-approach calculated using great-circle distance between Babylon (40.6342°N, 73.3246°W) and each 6-hourly observation. Storms are included if their center passed within 150 mi of Babylon — impacts (wind, surge, rainfall) routinely extend much further.