Lili is a retired Atlantic hurricane name. The World Meteorological Organization took it off the lists after the 2002 storm, so no future Atlantic storm will be called Lili. Its place on the list now belongs to Leah, on the 2026 list. Since 1984, six storms have been named Lili; the strongest, in 2002, peaked as a Category 4 hurricane.
Yes. Lili is on NHC’s list of retired Atlantic names because of the 2002 storm. It is one of 100 names retired there since 1954 (Tropical Cyclone Naming History and Retired Names).
A name is retired when a storm was so deadly or costly that using the name again would be insensitive; the World Meteorological Organization then picks a new name with the same first letter at its annual meeting.
It won’t be. Retired names are not used again on the Atlantic lists. Its place on the list, the L slot, now belongs to Leah, on the 2026 Atlantic list, which is the list in use this year.
Lili formed in the Southern Hemisphere in May 2019 and peaked as a tropical storm with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph (95 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 993 mb. It did not make landfall. The system was tracked for 6 days.
Tropical Storm Lili (2019): track and historyLili formed in the Atlantic in September 2002 and peaked as a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 145 mph (230 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 938 mb. It made 3 landfalls, first near Nueva Gerona, Cuba and last near Abbeville, United States. The system was tracked for 13 days.
Hurricane Lili (2002): track and historyLili formed in the Atlantic in October 1996 and peaked as a Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph (185 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 960 mb. It made landfall near San Nicolás de Bari, Cuba. The system was tracked for 15 days.
Hurricane Lili (1996): track and historyLili formed in the Atlantic in October 1990 and peaked as a Category 1 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 987 mb. It did not make landfall. The system was tracked for 9 days.
Hurricane Lili (1990): track and historyLili formed in the Southern Hemisphere in April 1989 and peaked as a Category 3 cyclone with maximum sustained winds of 125 mph (205 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 955 mb. It made landfall near Mont-Dore, New Caledonia. The system was tracked for 7 days.
Cyclone Lili (1989): track and historyLili formed in the Atlantic in December 1984 and peaked as a Category 1 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph (130 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 980 mb. It made landfall near Samaná, Dominican Republic. The system was tracked for 12 days.
Hurricane Lili (1984): track and history| Storm | Landfall near | Date (UTC) | Wind |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lili 2002 | 19.7°N 79.8°W | 2002-09-30 14:00 | 75 mph / 120 km/h |
| Lili 2002 | Nueva Gerona, Cuba | 2002-10-01 11:00 | 105 mph / 165 km/h |
| Lili 2002 | Guane, Cuba | 2002-10-01 14:00 | 105 mph / 165 km/h |
| Lili 2002 | Abbeville, United States | 2002-10-03 13:00 | 90 mph / 150 km/h |
| Lili 1996 | San Nicolás de Bari, Cuba | 1996-10-18 09:30 | 100 mph / 155 km/h |
| Lili 1989 | Mont-Dore, New Caledonia | 1989-04-10 18:00 | 60 mph / 95 km/h |
| Lili 1984 | Samaná, Dominican Republic | 1984-12-24 12:00 | 30 mph / 45 km/h |
Names go in alphabetical order, one per storm, as each storm reaches tropical-storm strength (39 mph, 34 knots), so a storm’s place in its season decides its name.
In each of 2002, 1996, 1990 and 1984, Lili was the 12th name used in the Atlantic season.
Storms named Lili appear in more than one ocean in our archive:
Each ocean region keeps its own name lists, drawn up by its own WMO regional committee (Tropical cyclone naming), so the same name can be given to unrelated storms in different oceans.
The most recent was Tropical Storm Lili in 2019, in the Southern Hemisphere. It formed on May 5, peaked at 60 mph (95 km/h) and lasted 6 days. It did not make landfall. Before that, the name was used in 2002, 1996, 1990, 1989 and 1984.
Hurricane Lili in 2002 was the strongest, peaking as a Category 4 hurricane with winds of 145 mph (230 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 938 mb. It formed in the Atlantic in September and made landfall near Nueva Gerona, Cuba. The weakest of the six, in 2019, peaked at 60 mph (95 km/h).