Thirty-eight

The northeastern hurricane of September 21, 1938, was New England's most damaging weather event ever. Calling it New England's Katrina underestimates its power. Without warning, the storm devastated Long Island and New England, killing hundreds of people and destroying anything in its path. After it left the coast, it maintained high winds into Vermont and New Hampshire and uprooted millions of acres of forest. The hurricane of '38 transformed New England and brought about social and ecological changes that can still be observed these many decades later.