 Tropical Storm Alma , the first named storm to develop in the 1974 Atlantic hurricane season , was a short lived tropical cyclone that made a rare Venezuelan landfall . The storm formed from the Intertropical Convergence Zone ( ITCZ ) on August 12 well to the east of the Windward Islands , but advisories were not issued until the next day when Alma was at peak intensity . Subsequently , Alma moved at an unusually brisk pace of between 20 mph ( 32 km / h ) to 25 mph ( 40 km / h ) through the southeastern Caribbean Sea , causing numerous watches and gale warnings to be issued throughout the Caribbean . Alma moved quickly over Trinidad and continued westward , becoming one of only four storms to cross the Paria Peninsula of northeastern Venezuela . The storm dissipated on August 15 over the high terrain of Venezuela . 
