moving ashore on September 10 between Freeport and Matagorda, Texas as a tropical storm. Fern dissipated on September 13 over northeastern Mexico. The precursor of Fern dropped rainfall up to of rainfall across South Florida, while totals of up to were reported in southeastern Louisiana where it made its first landfall. As it struck Texas, Fern produced strong winds up to , along with storm tides and heavy rainfall; the highest precipitation total was in Beeville. The heavy rainfall caused severe flash flooding that isolated numerous small towns in the southeastern portion of the state, damaging 7,500 buildings. In all, Fern left two indirect deaths and moderate damage totaling $30.2 million (1971 USD, $ USD). Hurricane Edith Hurricane Edith, the strongest storm of the season, developed from a tropical wave on September 5 to the east of the southern Lesser Antilles. It moved quickly across the southern Caribbean Sea, intensifying into a hurricane just off the north coast of South America. Edith rapidly intensified on September 9 and made landfall on Cape Gracias a Dios as a Category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. It quickly lost intensity over Central America and after briefly entering the Gulf of Honduras it crossed the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico. After moving across the Gulf of Mexico, a trough turned the storm to the northeast and Edith, after having restrengthened while accelerating towards the coast, made landfall on Louisiana with winds of 105 mph (170 km/h) on September 16. Edith steadily weakened over land and dissipated over Georgia on September 18. The hurricane killed two people when it passed near Aruba. Striking northeastern Central America as a Category 5 hurricane, Edith destroyed hundreds of homes and killed at least 35 people. In Texas high tides caused coastal flooding but little damage. Edith caused moderate to heavy damage in portions of Louisiana due to flooding and a tornado outbreak from the storm. One tornado, rated F3 on the Fujita Scale, damaged several homes and injured multiple people in Baton Rouge. The tornado outbreak extended eastward into Florida. Damage in the United States totaled $25 million (1971 USD, $ USD). Hurricane Ginger Hurricane Ginger was thought to be the longest lasting Atlantic hurricane on record until 2003, when the 1899 San Ciriaco hurricane was retroactively found to have lasted longer. The eighth tropical cyclone and fifth hurricane of the season, Ginger spent 27.25 days as