The 1935 Labor Day hurricane was one of the most powerful Atlantic storms ever recorded, striking the Florida Keys on September 2, 1935, with catastrophic force. It remains one of only four Category 5 hurricanes to hit the contiguous United States, boasting 1-minute sustained winds of 185 mph and a barometric pressure of 892 millibars—making it the most intense landfalling hurricane on record for decades. The storm unleashed a massive 18–20 foot storm surge that obliterated the town of Islamorada, destroyed the Florida East Coast Railway, and killed many veterans working on the Overseas Highway. After ravaging the Keys, it weakened and made a second landfall near Cedar Key, Florida, on September 4, before causing heavy rainfall and damage across the Carolinas and Mid-Atlantic. Notably, the storm prompted the first-ever aircraft flight specifically to locate a hurricane, piloted by Captain Leonard Povey of the Cuban Army Aviation Corps. This historic tempest set a grim benchmark for intensity and remains a pivotal event in the history of hurricane tracking and preparedness.