As September 2025 drew to a close, the Atlantic basin became the stage for a dramatic double threat: Hurricane Humberto and Hurricane Imelda, two powerful storms swirling dangerously close to Bermuda and unleashing chaos across the northern Caribbean and the U.S. East Coast. Residents from Cuba to the Carolinas braced for the impact, while authorities scrambled to mitigate the storms’ effects and keep communities safe.
On Tuesday, September 30, the outer bands of Hurricane Humberto began lashing Bermuda, a tiny yet resilient British territory in the North Atlantic. According to the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Humberto was a Category 2 hurricane, boasting maximum sustained winds of 100 mph (155 kph) and churning north-northwest at 17 mph (28 kph). At that time, the storm was about 275 miles (440 kilometers) west of Bermuda, and forecasters expected it to pass well west and north of the island through Wednesday morning.
But Humberto was not the only threat looming over Bermuda. Hot on its heels was Hurricane Imelda, which had strengthened into the Atlantic season’s ninth named storm and fourth hurricane on Tuesday. Imelda, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 kph), was moving northeast at 7 mph (11 kph), located around 180 miles (290 kilometers) north of Great Abaco Island. The Bermuda Weather Service warned that Imelda could pass near or directly over Bermuda by Wednesday afternoon as a Category 2 hurricane, potentially delivering a “double whammy” to the island.
Michael Weeks, Bermuda’s minister of national security, didn’t mince words about the perilous situation. “I strongly urge the public to prepare,” he said, emphasizing the seriousness of the week’s weather. Later, he added, “Hurricane Humberto is a dangerous storm, and with another system developing to our south, every household in Bermuda should take the necessary steps to be prepared.” According to AccuWeather hurricane expert Alex DaSilva, “It’s going to be a double whammy for Bermuda, Humberto first and Imelda following close behind.”
Bermuda, known for its sturdy concrete structures and robust infrastructure, was expected to weather up to 2 inches (5 centimeters) of rain from Humberto and as much as 4 inches (10 centimeters) from Imelda. Still, even the most prepared communities can only do so much against nature’s fury. Dangerous seas, strong winds, and heavy rain were all in the forecast, with authorities maintaining a hurricane watch and urging residents to finalize their storm preparations.
The impact of the storms extended far beyond Bermuda. Humberto generated dangerous swells that battered the northern Caribbean, the Bahamas, Bermuda itself, and much of the U.S. East Coast. “Both storms churning through the Atlantic are producing dangerous rip currents and rough surf. Beaches from Florida to New Jersey may have hazardous conditions through the weekend,” DaSilva warned. Even places not directly in the storms’ paths were feeling their effects. In Florida, for example, rough surf washed turtle hatchlings ashore at the Loggerhead Marinelife Center in Juno Beach, prompting rescues by staff. “We actually had two washbacks come in over the weekend,” said Justin Perrault, the center’s vice president of research.
Imelda’s journey through the Caribbean was especially destructive. On Monday, September 29, authorities in the Bahamas closed most schools as Imelda, still a tropical storm at the time, dumped heavy rain across the northern islands. The storm was about 165 miles (270 kilometers) north of Great Abaco Island, an area still recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Dorian in 2019. Imelda’s winds reached 70 mph (110 kph) as it moved northeast, and the National Hurricane Center predicted it would become a hurricane by Tuesday morning.
Power outages swept through parts of the Bahamas, with government offices shuttered and mandatory evacuation orders issued for some islands over the weekend. Flights were canceled, and airports closed until weather conditions improved. More than a dozen public schools on New Providence, Grand Bahama, and Abaco remained closed on September 29 and 30, as floodwaters persisted. Prime Minister Philip Davis summed up the situation succinctly: “The aftermath is serious. Floodwaters remain.”
Eastern Cuba bore the brunt of Imelda’s wrath earlier in the week. Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero announced that two people had died in Santiago de Cuba province as a result of the storm’s impact. State media later identified one of the victims as 60-year-old Luis Mario Pérez Coiterio, who perished following landslides triggered by relentless rain. Flooding and landslides cut off 17 communities in Santiago de Cuba, affecting more than 24,000 residents. More than 18,000 people were evacuated in neighboring Guantánamo province, according to reports from the state-run Caribe television channel.
Imelda dumped between 4 to 8 inches (10 to 20 centimeters) of rain across the northwest Bahamas and 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters) in eastern Cuba, causing widespread flooding. The storm’s reach extended northward, drenching the coastal areas of southeast North Carolina and threatening flash and urban flooding. The Carolinas braced for heavy rain, with the heaviest downpours expected along the coastline from Charleston to Wilmington. Charlotte and Raleigh, meanwhile, anticipated 1 to 2 inches (3 to 5 centimeters) of rain, along with wind gusts up to 40 mph in coastal areas.
State and local governments in the southeastern United States took no chances. South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster prepositioned search and rescue crews, while North Carolina Governor Josh Stein declared a state of emergency before Imelda even formed. On Tybee Island off the coast of Georgia, authorities handed out free sandbags to residents. Fort Lauderdale beachgoers, meanwhile, counted their blessings that the storm wasn’t targeting South Florida, though some, like Carl Alexandre, expressed concern for those in the Bahamas. “It’s great that we’re not having one as of right now. And now we get to run in the Florida sun,” Alexandre said, acknowledging the region’s good fortune.
The meteorological ballet between Humberto and Imelda fascinated weather experts. According to DaSilva, the two storms were expected to interact in a rare phenomenon known as the Fujiwhara effect, where they would rotate counterclockwise around each other. “It’s a very rare phenomenon overall in the Atlantic basin,” he explained. Fortunately, this interaction was expected to keep the most catastrophic rainfall away from the U.S. mainland. “This is really what’s going to be saving the United States from really seeing catastrophic rainfall,” DaSilva noted.
As the Atlantic hurricane season—running from June 1 to November 30—continued to unfold, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s prediction of an above-normal season seemed prescient. With Humberto and Imelda marking the fourth and ninth named storms of the year, communities across the region remained on high alert. The storms’ impacts, from deadly landslides in Cuba to school closures in the Bahamas and battered beaches along the U.S. coast, served as a sobering reminder of the power and unpredictability of nature.
With both Humberto and Imelda swirling perilously close, Bermuda and its neighbors steeled themselves for whatever the Atlantic might throw their way next—hoping for near misses, but preparing for the worst.