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Hermine's Post-Tropical Life: Coastal Erosion, Large Swells, Tropical Storm-Force Winds Affect Mid-Atlantic, Northeast (RECAP)

At a Glance

Hermine was stuck near mid-Atlantic, Northeast coast over Labor Day weekend.
The coast was hard hit with large waves and beach erosion.
Maximum winds were near 70 mph at times.
Tropical storm force-winds impacted the coast from North Carolina to southeastern Massachusetts.

Hermine was a nuisance long after it's post-tropical transition. For days after Hermine's core cooled and thunderstorms became shallow, parts of the Eastern Seaboard, from southeast New England to the mid-Atlantic states, had to deal with high surf, excessive beach erosion, coastal flooding and a high threat of rip currents.

Track of Hermine's 20-day trek around the Atlantic.

Hermine's Saga

We first followed what was then Invest 99L off the African coast on Aug. 18.

We have a complete writeup of the history of this system from its time as 99L to its impact in the Southeast, including becoming the first Florida hurricane landfall in almost 11 years, ending the state's record hurricane landfall drought.

(MORE: Hermine's history in the Southeast)

Once over land, Hermine was steered northeast around the west side of the Bermuda-Azores high-pressure system. It was also pulled somewhat by a southward dip in the jet stream, or trough, moving through the Great Lakes and Northeast.

Hermine began to strengthen after reaching the Atlantic Ocean on Sept. 3 because of a complex interaction with the upper atmosphere/upper level support, its return to warmer ocean temperatures and the loss of friction.

Surge began to impact portions of the mid-Atlantic, but Hermine lost more longitude than forecast, which lessened the forecast coastal inundation. Severe erosion occurred from New Jersey to Virginia.

But then something strange occurred.

Debris and boats are scattered across the road in Steinhatchee, Florida after Hurricane Hermine tore through the area on Friday, Sept. 2, 2016. Hermine was downgraded to a tropical storm after it made landfall, as it moves over Georgia. (Matt Stamey/The Gainesville Sun via AP) — Debris and boats are scattered across the road in Steinhatchee, Florida after Hurricane Hermine tore through the area on Friday, Sept. 2, 2016.
(Matt Stamey/The Gainesville Sun via AP - Click Photo For Slideshow)

Hermine's Wrath Felt From Florida

Up the East Coast

(Click Photo For Hermine Slideshow)

Send Your Hermine Photos Here

Merging with an old frontal boundary and having an upper-level low eventually pass over it, Hermine became a "post-tropical cyclone".

That Great Lakes/Northeast upper trough bypassed Hermine into the North Atlantic without grabbing hold of the storm and taking it along, as more frequently happens in the western Atlantic.

(MORE: Explaining Tropical vs. Post-Tropical Cyclones)

Upper-level high pressure built to the north and east of Hermine, trapping the system for several days off the East Coast.

Fortunately, Hermine eventually shifted just far enough offshore on Sept. 4 and 5 to avoid what could have been a much more destructive coastal flood event along the Eastern Seaboard. Hermine did expand in size on Sept. 5, which brought wind gusts over 50 mph to the Long Island and Massachusetts coasts. The highest winds stayed offshore.

By Sept. 6, Hermine shrank in size and continued to weaken. Tropical storm conditions receded back into the ocean. The National Hurricane Center stopped writing advisories on it shortly after.