Hurricane Laura was a deadly and destructive tropical cyclone that is tied with the 1856 Last Island hurricane and 2021's Hurricane Ida as the strongest hurricane on record to make landfall in the U.S. state of Louisiana, as measured by maximum sustained winds. The twelfth named storm, fourth hurricane, and first of seven major hurricanes of the record-breaking 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, Laura originated from a large tropical wave that moved off the West African coast on August 16 and became a tropical depression on August 20. Laura intensified into a tropical storm a day later, becoming the earliest twelfth named storm on record in the North Atlantic basin, forming eight days earlier than 1995's Hurricane Luis. Category 4 hurricane: peak winds of 150 mph (130 knots), lowest pressure 937 mb. August 20 – August 29, 2020. Landfalls: August 21 at 45 mph, 17.1°N 61.8°W; August 21 at 45 mph, 17.1°N 62.6°W; August 23 at 50 mph, 18.4°N 70.0°W; August 24 at 65 mph, 20.0°N 76.6°W; August 25 at 65 mph, 22.3°N 83.3°W; August 27 at 150 mph, 29.8°N 93.3°W. Accumulated cyclone energy: 12.9. Wiki link Track: NOAA National Hurricane Center, HURDAT2 best track AL132020 (public domain).