The unprecedented availability of meteorological data during the hurricane marked a turning point in the United States Weather Bureau's ability to forecast tropical cyclones.

The storm continued to weaken as it passed over Florida and the Southeastern United States, producing heavy rains throughout the U.S. East Coast and gusty winds that led to widespread power outages.

Based on aerial and surface observations, the Atlantic hurricane reanalysis project determined in 2013 that the system organized into a tropical depression by 12:00 UTC on October 12.

[4] Operationally, the first evidence of a developing cyclone was a report of rough seas later that evening by a ship 100 mi (160 km) east of the Swan Islands.

It became a major hurricane by 18:00 UTC on October 17 and reached Category 4 intensity six hours later as it passed over the western portion of Isla de la Juventud, Cuba.

[4] Maintaining peak strength, it made landfall on mainland Cuba at around 08:00 UTC on October 18,[4] crossing the narrowest part of the island 10–15 mi (16–24 km) west of Havana before emerging into the Gulf of Mexico.

[10] The head of the Weather Bureau's hurricane forecast office in Miami, Grady Norton, used the information from these upper-tropospheric observations to accurately predict the storm's general northward trajectory, despite the presence of a high-pressure area at the surface that would conventionally prevent a northerly track.

It is urgently recommended that the Weather Bureau lend all possible support to the establishment of additional ... [rawinsonde sites] in the Caribbean and Gulf area to further implement the hurricane warning service.Cuba evacuated residents from its western low-lying coasts.

[23] Fort Myers served as a place of refuge for soldiers stationed at nearby Buckingham Army Airfield and surrounding areas around the city.

[24] Storm preparations also began farther inland, with relief operations and evacuations in the Orlando area coordinated between the Red Cross and the Army Air Forces Tactical Center.

[26]: 1  Residents of Avon, North Carolina, were evacuated to Manteo and Elizabeth City late that day in advance of the weakened storm's approach.

[8] The hurricane brought squally conditions and rough surf to the Swan Islands over six days, the strongest measured gust reaching 58 mph (93 km/h).

[39] Heavy seas destroyed many wooden shoreline installations including docks and piers,[5] and extensive beach erosion exposed limestone outcrops.

[41] Cuba was the nation hardest hit by the hurricane,[8] though the full extent of casualties remains unknown as reports from rural areas of the island were never realized.

[46] The strong winds cut off most electricity in Havana and government telecommunications in Nueva Gerona, the capital of Isla de la Juventud, for three days.

[52] The storm's effects on the Cuban sugar crop remained uncertain, with estimates ranging from a four percent loss to a net increase due to beneficial rainfall.

[8] Eighteen deaths occurred in the state, including nine seamen who drowned when a tugboat sank off Bradenton; another 24 people were hospitalized for storm-related injuries elsewhere.

In its monthly Climatological Data publication, the Weather Bureau said that "systematic evacuation of all dangerously exposed beaches doubtless saved many lives".

[16] In 2018, an analysis of historical U.S. landfalls suggested that a similar storm striking the same areas would inflict $73.5 billion in damage when normalized for 2018 demographics and inflation.

An instruction flight out of Naval Air Station Lake City crashed shortly after takeoff 5.5 mi (8.9 km) east of the base, weather being cited as a likely cause.

[62]: 1-A  Farther offshore, a crew of 21 people was forced to abandon a lightship near the northwest entrance to the harbor at Key West while the storm passed.

[29] Winds of 35 mph (56 km/h) tore awnings and broke windows in downtown Jacksonville,[45] and brought down the antenna of radio station WJCT.

Punta Gorda farther south mostly avoided the storm's damaging effects, though downed trees were reported at nearby Nocatee and Arcadia.

Between 500–900 acres (200–360 ha) of snap bean crops were lost throughout the Everglades, battered by excessive rainfall of 8–10 in (200–250 mm), but growers were optimistic the rains would later lead to improved harvests.

[7] These winds occurred over the state's core citrus-producing areas—De Soto, Hardee, Lake, Orange, Polk, and Sarasota counties—resulting in the loss of approximately 25 million boxes of fruit.

[101] Rough surf topped bulkheads damaged by the 1944 Great Atlantic hurricane along the coast of North Jersey, flooding oceanside streets.

A Pan-American Clipper with American government officials onboard was dispatched to survey isolated areas of Cuba, including Pinar del Río.

Senator Claude Pepper of Florida wrote letters to the Office of Price Administration (OPA), the War Food Administration (WFA), and the War Production Board (WPB), requesting their assistance in surveying the damage and to consider both the price ceilings on citrus and restrictions on tin usage; relaxing tin restrictions would allow the salvaging of wind-torn fruits by canning them as juices.

[111] The WPB, operating jointly with the Red Cross, made 5,000,000 ft (1,500,000 m) of lumber and 5,000 shingle squares available for repairs and in the Tampa area.

[112] The Federal Housing Administration allowed mortgage loans of $5,400 for residents whose homes were destroyed by the hurricane, based on the agency's assessment that "property damage was limited to roofs and broken glass" in the state.