<Tr> <Th> Areas affected </Th> <Td> Hispaniola, Lesser Antilles, Greater Antilles, Turks and Caicos, Bahamas, East Coast of the United States, Vermont (Landfalls in North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Atlantic Canada </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> Part of the 2011 Atlantic hurricane season </Td> </Tr> <P> Hurricane Irene was a large and destructive tropical cyclone which affected much of the Caribbean and East Coast of the United States during late August 2011 . Irene is ranked as the ninth - costliest hurricane in United States history . The ninth named storm, first hurricane, and first major hurricane of the 2011 Atlantic hurricane season, Irene originated from a well - defined Atlantic tropical wave that began showing signs of organization east of the Lesser Antilles . Due to development of atmospheric convection and a closed center of circulation, the system was designated as Tropical Storm Irene on August 20, 2011 . After intensifying, Irene made landfall in St. Croix as a strong tropical storm later that day . Early on August 21, the storm made a second landfall in Puerto Rico . While crossing the island, Irene strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane . The storm paralleled offshore of Hispaniola, continuing to slowly intensify in the process . Shortly before making four landfalls in the Bahamas, Irene peaked as a 120 mph (190 km / h) Category 3 hurricane . </P> <P> Thereafter, the storm slowly leveled off in intensity as it struck the Bahamas and then curved northward after passing east of Grand Bahama . Continuing to weaken, Irene was downgraded to a Category 1 hurricane before making landfall on the Outer Banks of North Carolina on August 27, becoming the first hurricane to make landfall in the United States since Hurricane Ike in 2008 . Early on the following day, the storm re-emerged into the Atlantic from southeastern Virginia . Although Irene remained a hurricane over water, it weakened to a tropical storm while making yet another landfall in the Little Egg Inlet in southeastern New Jersey on August 27 . A few hours later, Irene made its ninth and final landfall in Brooklyn, New York City . Early on August 29, Irene transitioned into an extratropical cyclone hitting Vermont after remaining inland as a tropical cyclone for less than 12 hours . </P>

When did hurricane irene hit the united states