No active hurricanes threatening Sarasota right now

Could the next one hit soon? 204 hurricanes have impacted the Sarasota area since 1852 — set up free alerts so you'll have time to prepare when one's on the way.

204
Hurricanes affecting Sarasota area
2024
Most recent
160 kt
Strongest peak winds
4 mi
Closest approach
Local note: Sarasota’s position on Florida’s Gulf coast and its low-lying barrier islands make storm surge the dominant threat, with catastrophic surge and wind impacts underscored by Hurricane Ian (2022) and the nearby Cat 5 approach of Milton (2024).

Coverage on this page applies broadly to the Sarasota area — including Tallevast, Longboat Key, Oneco, Osprey, Bradenton, Palmetto, Holmes Beach, Cortez. Tropical storms rarely respect city limits.

When do hurricanes typically threaten the Sarasota area?

Distribution of 204 hurricanes that have come within 150 mi of Sarasota, by month of closest approach.

J
1 F
M
A
3 M
23 J
17 J
43 A
56 S
49 O
11 N
1 D

Recent notable storms affecting the Sarasota area

Year Name Peak Cat Peak Winds Closest Approach
2024 MILTON Cat 5 155 kt 6 mi
2024 DEBBY Cat 1 70 kt 108 mi
2024 HELENE Cat 4 120 kt 143 mi
2023 IDALIA Cat 4 115 kt 136 mi
2022 IAN Cat 5 140 kt 48 mi
2022 NICOLE Cat 1 65 kt 74 mi
2021 ELSA Cat 1 75 kt 65 mi
2020 ETA Cat 4 130 kt 71 mi
2020 SALLY Cat 2 95 kt 74 mi
2020 ISAIAS Cat 1 80 kt 180 mi
2017 IRMA Cat 5 155 kt 63 mi
2016 MATTHEW Cat 5 145 kt 174 mi
2016 HERMINE Cat 1 70 kt 180 mi
2014 ARTHUR Cat 2 85 kt 200 mi
2012 ISAAC Cat 1 70 kt 174 mi
Hurricane-strength storms (Cat 1+) since 2006 that came within 200 miles of Sarasota. 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 Sarasota

Year Name Peak Cat Peak Winds Closest Approach Date of Closest
1988 KEITH Cat 1 65 kt 4 mi Nov 23, 1988
2024 MILTON Cat 5 155 kt 6 mi Oct 10, 2024
1944 UNNAMED Cat 4 125 kt 10 mi Oct 19, 1944
1991 ANA TS 45 kt 10 mi Jul 01, 1991
1946 UNNAMED Cat 2 85 kt 12 mi Oct 08, 1946
1878 UNNAMED Cat 2 90 kt 13 mi Sep 09, 1878
1930 UNNAMED Cat 4 135 kt 15 mi Sep 09, 1930
2007 BARRY TS 50 kt 15 mi Jun 02, 2007
2017 EMILY TS 50 kt 15 mi Jul 31, 2017
2001 GABRIELLE Cat 1 70 kt 17 mi Sep 14, 2001
Showing the 10 closest of 204 total storms within 150 mi of Sarasota since 1852.

If a hurricane threatens Sarasota

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

Historical data: NOAA HURDAT2 Atlantic and Eastern North Pacific hurricane databases. Closest-approach calculated using great-circle distance between Sarasota (27.3348°N, 82.5375°W) and each 6-hourly observation. Storms are included if their center passed within 150 mi of Sarasota — impacts (wind, surge, rainfall) routinely extend much further.