the first hurricane to strike the island since the 1932 San Ciprian hurricane. It crossed the central portion of the island, and the structure deteriorated and the eye became difficult to locate as Betsy crossed the highest mountains. On two occasions the eye dropped slightly to the south because of the mountains. The eye became well-defined as it approached the coast, and Betsy emerged on the northwest coast near Camuy at a similar intensity as when it moved ashore. The hurricane re-intensified as it moved toward the Bahamas, reaching winds of on August 13. That day, the eye passed near Grand Turk Island and San Salvador Island. By that time, the storm had increased in size; the Hurricane Hunters reported that the gale-force winds extended to its north. The eye reformed on August 14, becoming well-organized and attaining a minimum barometric pressure of . The next day, Betsy turned to the northeast due to an approaching trough. Despite beginning a weakening trend, the pressure dropped further to on August 17. The eye became increasingly poorly defined, and Betsy weakened to a tropical storm on August 18 to the south of Nova Scotia. Turning to the east, it became extratropical later that day, eventually dissipating on August 20. Impact When the first advisory was issued on Betsy, a hurricane watch was issued from Barbados to Antigua. Around that time, a hurricane watch was also issued for Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands, which was later upgraded to a hurricane warning. This was the first hurricane warning in Puerto Rico to be aired on television. The hurricane struck Guadeloupe with winds from , which caused extensive damage to 1,000 houses. The communications throughout the territory were disrupted. The high winds destroyed upwards of 60% of the banana, breadfruit, coconut, and papaya crop, which severely impacted the economy. Across the French West Indies, the hurricane resulted in 18 deaths and caused $10 million in damage, $3.5 million of which from crop damage. In nearby Dominica, winds reached . In Saint Croix, the hurricane dropped , while winds reached . In the northeastern Caribbean, Betsy capsized a ship and killed its crew of two. Another ship in the region drifted for several days south of Saint Croix due to a damaged engine. When Betsy crossed Puerto Rico, it produced hurricane-force winds across the entire territory except in the southwest corner. Sustained winds