Saffir-Simpson Scale

The Saffir-Simpson Scale was developed in 1969 as a way of classifying and assessing damage from a hurricane. The scale progresses from Category One (a system causing mostly minimal damage) to Category Five (a system capable of catastrophic damage), and is based on the maximum sustained winds estimated or measured within the storm system. Any hurricane rated at or above a Category Three storm is deemed a “Major Hurricane”, capable of severe damage and substantial loss of life.

Forecasters and hurricane experts have determined through careful examination of hurricane intensity that within each of these categories of storms comes a standard expected storm surge value and barometric pressure reading. Some of the lowest recorded barometric pressure readings on Earth have come from the eye of Category Five hurricanes and these monster storms are capable of producing a storm surge upwards of 20 feet.

While several storms have come close to the region over the last five to ten years, the last hurricane to strike the Cape Cod region directly was Hurricane Bob in August of 1991. Bob was a weakening Category Two storm, or more likely a strong Category One, when it crossed over the region 15 years ago.