The 2003 Atlantic hurricane season was a very active season with tropical cyclogenesis occurring before and after the official bounds of the season—the first such occurrence since the 1970 season. The season produced 21 tropical cyclones, of which 16 developed into named storms; seven of those attained hurricane status, of which three reached major hurricane status. The strongest hurricane of the season was Hurricane Isabel, which reached Category 5 status on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane scale northeast of the Lesser Antilles; Isabel later struck North Carolina as a Category 2 hurricane, causing $5.5 billion in damage and a total of 51 deaths across the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. 16 storms, 7 hurricanes, 3 major hurricanes (Category 3+). Strongest: Isabel (165 mph). Accumulated cyclone energy ≈ 175. Wiki link