An easterly wave moved off the African coast on August 23rd. A tropical depression formed from this wave 180 miles east of Guadeloupe on the 29th. The system intensified gradually, becoming a tropical storm south of the Mona Passage on the 30th, and a hurricane just south of Jamaica on the 1st. Moderate rainfall fell across the northeast Caribbean islands as Carmen passed by to the south. The storm total precipitation maps for that region are shown below.

As the cyclone entered the western Caribbean Sea, rapid intensification ensued. Carmen struck the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico as a category 4 hurricane. After weakening over land, Carmen regained hurricane strength on the 5th, and a category 4 again in the northern Gulf of Mexico on the 7th.Weakening occurred prior to landfall as cooler, drier air entered the system. Carmen moved westward as it made landfall, eventually becoming absorbed by a deep cyclone in the Southern Plains. Below is its track, supplied by the National Hurricane Center. Below is a storm total rainfall map for Carmen. Note the maximum well east of the track in southern Alabama, with a minor secondary maximum along the track of the storm.