Hurricane Donna was a very destructive hurricane that caused extensive damage from the Lesser Antilles to New England. At least 364 people were killed by the hurricane and property damage was estimated at $900 million (1960 USD).
West Africa The precursor to Hurricane Donna brought severe weather to the
Dakar area of
Senegal.
Air France Flight 343, which was flying from
Paris, France to
Abidjan, Ivory Coast, attempted to land at the
Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport as a
layover. However, due to squally weather, the plane instead crashed into the Atlantic Ocean, killing all 63 people on board. Heavy rainfall was also reported in Cape Verde on August 30. During the passing of Hurricane Donna,
Anguilla recorded five deaths, including a woman who died when the roof of her house collapsed. and
Puerto Rico on September 5|leftDespite passing only north of the island, Donna caused only minor damage on
St. Thomas in the
United States Virgin Islands. A station there reported a wind gust of . The hurricane left about 2,500 people homeless on the island.
Turks and Caicos and Bahamas on September 7 On
Grand Turk in the
Turks and Caicos, Donna produced winds of , as the strongest winds remained north of the island. However, the storm dropped heavy rainfall of over , much of which fell in a 12‑hour period.
Andros experienced hurricane-force winds for a few hours, and winds on Fortune Island were estimated at before the anemometer blew away. The strongest winds remained south of the northwestern Bahamas, which limited damage there.
United States There were 50 people reported dead in the United States, with damages totaling to $3.35 billion. Donna crossed directly over United States Air Force radar station
Texas Tower 4, causing severe damage to the structure and leading to its eventual loss in January 1961. Donna was the only hurricane to affect every state along the East Coast with hurricane-force winds.
Florida destroyed by the storm surge from Hurricane Donna The U.S. state of Florida received the most damage from Hurricane Donna. Portions of southern and western Florida received over of rainfall from the hurricane, peaking at . The highest observed
storm surge of was reported at Marathon. The hurricane also lashed
Southwest Florida, where tides were above normal. Farther north, an estimated 75% of buildings were extensively damaged between Marathon and Tavernier. In the former, tides inundated the city and destroyed several subdivisions. Storm surge inundated parts of the
Overseas Highway. Many boats and docks were severely damaged or destroyed. Additionally, the pipeline supplying water to the Florida Keys was wrecked in three places. Donna was the first hurricane to affect Miami, Florida, since
Hurricane King in October 1950. Although structural damage in and around Miami was generally light, winds shattered windows and uprooted trees. Heavy precipitation inundated streets.
Boynton Beach observed wind gusts up to at
the inlet. radar clearly locates Hurricane Donna's perfectly circular eye at 10pm (ET) September 9, 1960, just prior to landfall over the central Florida Keys.|left|240x240px Large tracts of
mangrove forest were lost in the western portion of
Everglades National Park, while at least 35% of the white heron population in the park were killed. The lodge and marina at
Flamingo, as well as a ranger's way station near
Cape Sable, were virtually destroyed. The city briefly became inaccessible due to inundated roads. Thousands of trees were toppled, from Hurricane DonnaDonna left about $3 million in property damage and two deaths in
Fort Myers. A new church in
Bradenton was destroyed, while much of the city was left without power. High winds deroofed an armory building in
Dade City sheltering 150 people. destroyed by Hurricane Donna|left Throughout the state of Florida, the storm destroyed 2,156 homes and trailers, severely damaged 3,903, and inflicted minor impact on 30,524 others. Approximately 391 farm buildings were destroyed, an additional 989 suffered extensive impact, and 2,499 others received minor damage. Roughly 174 buildings were demolished, 1,029 received major impact, and 4,254 suffered minor damage. Additionally, 281 boats were destroyed or severely damaged. A total of 50% of grapefruit crop was lost, 10% of the orange and tangerine crops were ruined, and the avocado crop was almost destroyed. With at least $350 million in damage in Florida alone, Donna was the costliest hurricane to impact the state, at the time. Additionally, there were 14 confirmed fatalities: six from drowning, four from heart attacks, two from automobile accidents, and two from electrocution. About 1,188 others were injured.
Southeastern United States and Mid-Atlantic ; much of the structure was destroyed by an
F3 tornado The storm brought minor impact to
Georgia. Wind gusts of along the coast felled trees and tree limbs, resulting in electrical and telephone-service outages. In
Brunswick, GA, a power outage at the power plant caused a minor explosion. Heavy rainfall temporarily flooded some streets in the city. Further north in
South Carolina, gale-force winds were reported along the coast, but caused little damage. An F3 tornado struck areas just north of
Downtown Charleston, destroying several houses and severely damaging a number of others. There were 10 injuries, some of which were caused by flying glass. Damage from this tornado was over $500,000. An F1 tornado also touched down in
Garden City Beach, destroying or extensively damaging six buildings. In
Beaufort County, many trees were uprooted, power lines were downed, homes were unroofed, piers were destroyed, and there was significant damage to corn and soybean crops. on September 12, showing Hurricane Donna making landfall in North Carolina, the storm would also approach
Long Island and
New England later that day|left|265x265px In North Carolina, Donna brought two tornadoes to the state. An F1 tornado damaged several small buildings in
Bladen County. An F2 tornado in
Sampson County destroyed a dwelling with eight occupants, all of whom were hospitalized. There were eight deaths, including three from drowning, two from falling trees, two from weather-related traffic accidents, and one from electrocution. At least 100 people were injured enough to require hospitalization. However, in other areas, of precipitation fell, causing some washouts and local flooding. Waves along the coast ripped small boats and pleasure craft from their moorings and subsequently smashed them against rocks or seawalls. After becoming extratropical, the remnants of Donna continued northeastward into
New Brunswick,
Quebec, and then
Labrador. Wind gusts of in Quebec snapped electrical poles and trees. One death occurred when a man suffered a heart attack when his home was threatened by a fire. Additionally, weather-related traffic accidents in the province resulted in two injuries. ==Aftermath==