page_title: List of wettest tropical cyclones in the United States
section_title: American Samoa
hierarchical_section_title: List of wettest tropical cyclones in the United States / American Samoa
caption_attribution_description: Cyclone Heta approaches the island of Niue in this true-color Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) image acquired on January 6, 2004 by the Aqua satellite. The storm blew through Samoa, seen in the top center, on January 5 with 105 mile-per-hour winds, which blew down trees and knocked out communications and power. The storm intensified as it moved southeast toward Niue. At the time this image was taken, Heta’s winds reached a powerful 150 miles per hour with gusts up to 184 miles per hour. When Heta hit Niue on January 7, it hit with brutal force. Half of Alofi’s (the capital city) commercial sector was wiped out, taking with it the island’s communication and power sources, as well as many stores of fresh water. In the wake of the winds, huge waves hit the island and washed away many of the islander’s homes, and destroyed a hospital. The waves also caused a number of injuries and deaths.
context_page_description: Tropical cyclones move into the contiguous United States from the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, and the eastern Pacific Ocean. The highest rainfall totals in the country have been measured across the Gulf Coast and lower portions of the Eastern Seaboard. Intermediate amounts have been measured across the Southwest, New England, and the Midwest. The northern Great Plains and Pacific Northwest have received the lowest amounts, as those regions lie exceptionally far from the breeding grounds of Atlantic and Eastern Pacific tropical cyclones.
  The wettest tropical cyclone in the United States storm on record is Hurricane Harvey, which dumped 60.58 in of rain on Southeast Texas in 2017. Tropical Storm Claudette holds the national 24-hour rainfall record: 42.00 in in Alvin, Texas.
context_section_description: Tropical cyclones affect the island chain with tropical storm-force winds once every three years, on average.  The wettest known cyclone to affect the island group occurred early in 1966, when nearly 19 inches (480 mm) fell at Vaipito.
caption: Cyclone Heta (2004)
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