No active hurricanes threatening Pensacola right now

Could the next one hit soon? 169 hurricanes have impacted the Pensacola area since 1851 — set up free alerts so you'll have time to prepare when one's on the way.

169
Hurricanes affecting Pensacola area
2021
Most recent
150 kt
Strongest peak winds
8 mi
Closest approach
Local note: Pensacola's exposed position on the northern Gulf and low-lying barrier beaches make storm surge and coastal inundation the primary hazards—Hurricane Sally's 2020 surge and prolonged battering exemplified how even Category 2 storms can produce severe flooding and damage.

Coverage on this page applies broadly to the Pensacola area — including Gulf Breeze, Gonzalez, Cantonment, Bagdad, Milton, Navarre, Molino. Tropical storms rarely respect city limits.

When do hurricanes typically threaten the Pensacola area?

Distribution of 169 hurricanes that have come within 150 mi of Pensacola, by month of closest approach.

J
F
M
A
1 M
16 J
23 J
36 A
54 S
35 O
4 N
D

Recent notable storms affecting the Pensacola area

Year Name Peak Cat Peak Winds Closest Approach
2024 FRANCINE Cat 2 90 kt 183 mi
2022 NICOLE Cat 1 65 kt 165 mi
2021 IDA Cat 4 130 kt 195 mi
2020 SALLY Cat 2 95 kt 23 mi
2020 MARCO Cat 1 65 kt 145 mi
2020 ZETA Cat 3 100 kt 160 mi
2019 BARRY Cat 1 65 kt 140 mi
2018 MICHAEL Cat 5 140 kt 107 mi
2017 NATE Cat 1 80 kt 100 mi
2017 IRMA Cat 5 155 kt 196 mi
2016 HERMINE Cat 1 70 kt 176 mi
2012 ISAAC Cat 1 70 kt 158 mi
2009 IDA Cat 2 90 kt 12 mi
2008 PALOMA Cat 4 125 kt 144 mi
Hurricane-strength storms (Cat 1+) since 2008 that came within 200 miles of Pensacola. 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 Pensacola

Year Name Peak Cat Peak Winds Closest Approach Date of Closest
2005 DENNIS Cat 4 130 kt 8 mi Jul 10, 2005
1995 ERIN Cat 2 85 kt 9 mi Aug 03, 1995
1902 UNNAMED Cat 2 90 kt 10 mi Oct 10, 1902
1926 UNNAMED Cat 4 130 kt 10 mi Sep 20, 1926
1948 UNNAMED TS 35 kt 10 mi Jul 09, 1948
1916 UNNAMED Cat 2 95 kt 11 mi Oct 18, 1916
1995 OPAL Cat 4 130 kt 11 mi Oct 04, 1995
2009 IDA Cat 2 90 kt 12 mi Nov 10, 2009
1934 UNNAMED TS 50 kt 13 mi Oct 06, 1934
1919 UNNAMED TS 55 kt 14 mi Jul 04, 1919
Showing the 10 closest of 169 total storms within 150 mi of Pensacola since 1851.

If a hurricane threatens Pensacola

  1. Know your evacuation zone. Look up yours by address via your state or county emergency management office (Escambia 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 Pensacola

Historical data: NOAA HURDAT2 Atlantic and Eastern North Pacific hurricane databases. Closest-approach calculated using great-circle distance between Pensacola (30.4223°N, 87.2248°W) and each 6-hourly observation. Storms are included if their center passed within 150 mi of Pensacola — impacts (wind, surge, rainfall) routinely extend much further.