Marine High Wind · Atlantic North

Hurricane Irene produced numerous tropical storm force wind gusts and a couple of measured hurricane force wind gusts over the area waters including Delaware Bay from the late afternoon of the 27th through the early evening of the 28th. Peak wind gusts averaged 55 to 65 knots. The strongest winds associated with Irene occurred at two distinct times. The first surge occurred during bands of heavier rain during the evening and late night of the 27th. The second peak occurred during the late morning and early afternoon of the 28th when skies were clearing and deeper mixing of the atmosphere brought stronger winds to the water.

The highest wind gusts recorded during Hurricane Irene were 66 knots (76 mph) at Brandywine Light Shoal in Lower Delaware Bay, 65 knots (75 mph) at the Cape May Ferry Terminal (Cape May County), 60 knots (69 mph) in Harvey Cedars and Tuckerton (Ocean County), 59 knots (68 mph) in Cape May Harbor (Cape May County), 57 knots (66 mph) in Lewes (Sussex County Delaware) and the Atlantic City Marina (Atlantic County), 56 knots (64 mph) in Dewey Beach (Sussex County Delaware), 54 knots (62 mph) at the Delaware Bay Buoy (44009), 52 knots (60 mph) at the Buoy to the entrance of New York Harbor (44065) and 50 knots (58 mph) at Ship John Shoal Light in Upper Delaware Bay and Sandy Hook (Monmouth County)

Hurricane Irene formed east of the Leeward Islands on Saturday the 20th. It moved northeast and passed over Puerto Rico overnight on the 21st. As Irene moved off the island, it intensified into a hurricane. Irene just bypassed the island of Hispaniola to its north and then passed over the Eastern Bahamas on the 25th as it reached category three hurricane strength. From the Bahamas, Irene moved nearly due north and slowly weakened to a category two hurricane on the 26th and a category one hurricane on the 27th. Irene made her initial landfall near Cape Lookout, North Carolina at 8 a.m. EDT on the 27th and then proceeded to the northnortheast and went back over the Atlantic Ocean near the Virginia and North Carolina border at 7 p.m. EDT on the 27th. From there Irene paralleled the Delmarva Peninsula and the center passed about 15 miles east of Delaware between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. EDT on the 28th. Irene made her second landfall on Brigantine Island, just north of Atlantic City, New Jersey at 535 a.m. EDT on the 28th. Irene then proceeded to move across eastern Ocean and Monmouth Counties before moving through New York City.