No active hurricanes threatening Cape Coral right now

Could the next one hit soon? 198 hurricanes have impacted the Cape Coral area since 1852 — set up free alerts so you'll have time to prepare when one's on the way.

198
Hurricanes affecting Cape Coral area
2024
Most recent
160 kt
Strongest peak winds
3 mi
Closest approach
Local note: Low-lying Cape Coral's extensive coastline on the Caloosahatchee estuary makes storm surge and tidal flooding the dominant hazards, a vulnerability underscored by catastrophic surge and wind damage when Hurricane Ian (2022, Cat 5) struck the region.

Coverage on this page applies broadly to the Cape Coral area — including Fort Myers, North Fort Myers, Fort Myers Beach, Saint James City, Sanibel, Bokeelia, Estero, Pineland. Tropical storms rarely respect city limits.

When do hurricanes typically threaten the Cape Coral area?

Distribution of 198 hurricanes that have come within 150 mi of Cape Coral, by month of closest approach.

J
1 F
M
A
3 M
19 J
16 J
43 A
54 S
50 O
11 N
1 D

Recent notable storms affecting the Cape Coral area

Year Name Peak Cat Peak Winds Closest Approach
2024 MILTON Cat 5 155 kt 68 mi
2024 DEBBY Cat 1 70 kt 148 mi
2024 HELENE Cat 4 120 kt 188 mi
2023 IDALIA Cat 4 115 kt 171 mi
2022 IAN Cat 5 140 kt 16 mi
2022 NICOLE Cat 1 65 kt 101 mi
2021 ELSA Cat 1 75 kt 77 mi
2020 SALLY Cat 2 95 kt 52 mi
2020 ETA Cat 4 130 kt 109 mi
2020 ISAIAS Cat 1 80 kt 152 mi
2017 IRMA Cat 5 155 kt 22 mi
2016 MATTHEW Cat 5 145 kt 159 mi
2016 HERMINE Cat 1 70 kt 195 mi
2014 ARTHUR Cat 2 85 kt 181 mi
2012 ISAAC Cat 1 70 kt 150 mi
Hurricane-strength storms (Cat 1+) since 2006 that came within 200 miles of Cape Coral. 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 Cape Coral

Year Name Peak Cat Peak Winds Closest Approach Date of Closest
1888 UNNAMED Cat 3 110 kt 3 mi Aug 17, 1888
1894 UNNAMED Cat 3 105 kt 6 mi Sep 25, 1894
1910 UNNAMED Cat 4 130 kt 6 mi Oct 18, 1910
1994 GORDON Cat 1 75 kt 6 mi Nov 16, 1994
1945 UNNAMED TS 35 kt 11 mi Sep 05, 1945
1953 HAZEL Cat 1 75 kt 12 mi Oct 09, 1953
1896 UNNAMED Cat 2 85 kt 13 mi Oct 09, 1896
2004 CHARLEY Cat 4 130 kt 15 mi Aug 13, 2004
2022 IAN Cat 5 140 kt 16 mi Sep 28, 2022
1873 UNNAMED Cat 3 100 kt 16 mi Oct 07, 1873
Showing the 10 closest of 198 total storms within 150 mi of Cape Coral since 1852.

If a hurricane threatens Cape Coral

  1. Know your evacuation zone. Look up yours by address via your state or county emergency management office (Lee 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 Cape Coral

Historical data: NOAA HURDAT2 Atlantic and Eastern North Pacific hurricane databases. Closest-approach calculated using great-circle distance between Cape Coral (26.5775°N, 81.9522°W) and each 6-hourly observation. Storms are included if their center passed within 150 mi of Cape Coral — impacts (wind, surge, rainfall) routinely extend much further.