The Great Hurricane: 1938

On the night of September 21, 1938, news on the radio was full of the invasion of Czechoslovakia. There was no mention of severe weather approaching New England. By the time oceanfront residents noticed an ominous yellow color in the sky, it was too late. In a matter of hours, a massive hurricane of unprecedented force ripped its way from Long Island to Providence, obliterating coastal communities, destroying whole commercial fishing fleets from Montauk to Narragansett Bay, and killing seven hundred people. Early that morning, salt fishermen heading out on calm seas noticed a sudden drop in the barometer. Hurtling toward them at a record speed was a hurricane that would strike with catastrophic waves surging over fifty feet. Winds whipped up to 186 miles per hour, trashing boats and smashing homes from Long Island to Connecticut and Rhode Island. Most victims never knew what hit them. Like The Perfect Storm, Burns's spellbinding storytelling follows the storm's punishing path in a seamless and suspenseful narrative, preserving for posterity the legendary story of the Great Hurricane and the personal stories of those affected by its swath of destruction.