However, given scant observations from ships and weather stations, significant uncertainty of tropical cyclone tracks, intensity, and duration remains, particularly for those storms that stayed at sea.

In mid-August, a hurricane struck near Cameron, Louisiana, producing strong winds and water level rises that caused $245,550 in damage throughout that state and Texas.

[5] The storm temporarily embarked on a more westerly course before banking south-southwest, through which time it intensified into a Category 1 hurricane, peaking with winds of 80 mph (130 km/h).

Gradual weakening ensued as the cyclone entered the deep tropical Atlantic east of the Leeward Islands, with its final point recognized at 18:00 UTC on January 6.

[7] A strong tropical storm with peak winds of 70 mph (110 km/h) was first identified just west of Antigua and Barbuda at 06:00 UTC on August 8,[6] though it may have developed days earlier in the absence of a reliable data network.

The rapidly-moving system curved west, passing north of Puerto Rico before striking the northeastern coastline of the Dominican Republic as a 50 mph (80 km/h) cyclone at 09:00 UTC on August 9.

[5] It tracked into the Caribbean Sea and intensified into the season's second hurricane, with the center of the storm narrowly missing Jamaica to the north late on August 11.

Observations from Grand Cayman indicate that it strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane,[5] reaching peak winds of 100 mph (160 km/h) that day, before the system slowly weakened.

It moved through the Yucatán Channel and into the Gulf of Mexico, making a later landfall just west of Cameron, Louisiana, at 01:00 UTC on August 15 with winds of 75 mph (121 km/h).

[8] A small tornado moved through Kinder, causing $2,000 in damage after it destroyed a house and toppled two barns, fencing, and some trees.

[12] Considerable damage to highways was also noted, with detours or interruption to traffic for 20–40 miles (32–64 km) east of the center, particularly in Jefferson Davis Parish.

[15] A tropical storm first developed to the south of Haiti by 06:00 UTC on August 23 and moved west-northwest, a trajectory it maintained throughout its duration.

[5] The storm reached its peak as a Category 3 hurricane with winds of 120 mph (190 km/h) around 02:00 UTC on August 26, while making landfall along the Yucatán Peninsula.

It weakened to Category 1 intensity as it crossed land and emerged into the southern Gulf of Mexico, later moving ashore the coast of Tamaulipas with winds of 85 mph (137 km/h) at 08:00 UTC on August 28.

[5][6] Thousands of banana trees were destroyed by 40 mph (64 km/h) winds across six districts in Jamaica;[16] this accounted for roughly 5% of the island's crop,[17] though some areas locally saw losses as high as 20%.

[11] After the hurricane struck the coastline of northern Mexico, local observers reported a 75–80 miles (121–129 km) swath of damage along the beach in La Pesca.

[24] Waters rose over 18 ft (5.5 m) to their highest level in six years, over-spilling into farmlands near Matamoros, Tamaulipas after a levee was breached and inundating multiple areas on the Mexican side of the United States–Mexico border near McAllen, Texas.

The vehicles of several American tourists were engulfed by the Santa Catarina River on the road between Mexico City and Ciudad Victoria.

[14] However, this rain exacerbated floodwaters within the river to breach a levee in Cameron County, where two people were drowned and swept away in Los Indios.

Farther west in Albuquerque, New Mexico, rainfall totaling 1.66 inches (42 mm) eroded unpaved side roads and inundated the basements of homes and stores.

By 00:00 UTC on September 13,[6] data from nearby ships was sufficient to upgrade it to a tropical storm with peak winds of 40 mph (64 km/h).

[5] A tropical depression developed off the coastline of western Africa around 12:00 UTC on September 9 and embarked on a west-northwest course,[5] steered by a large upper-level ridge to its north.

[6] The system moved northwest and struck San Pedro Town, Belize, with winds of 45 mph (72 km/h) at 08:00 UTC on October 11.

[5][6] The tropical storm produced brisk winds across coastal sections of Florida, downing trees, signs, and power lines in the St. Petersburg area.

Finally, by 00:00 UTC on October 19,[6] the depression intensified into a tropical or subtropical storm and attained peak winds of 40 mph (64 km/h) to the north of the Turks and Caicos Islands.

An approaching cold front imparted wind shear on the storm, and the system dissipated after 00:00 UTC on October 21 as it was overtaken by a non-tropical low east of the northern Florida coastline.

[6] In its early stages, the system exhibited a broad radius of maximum winds and was in close proximity to a stationary front, suggesting it was a subtropical storm for most of its duration.

Strong winds in heavy squalls south of the storm's center caused damage to telephone lines in the vicinity of Baracoa, Cuba.

It transitioned into a tropical depression on August 29–30 as the frontal feature dissipated but once again acquired extratropical characteristics as another front approached the center.

[5] The table below includes the duration, names, landfall(s), denoted in parentheses, damage, and death totals of all tropical cyclones in the 1938 Atlantic hurricane season.