The 1976 Atlantic hurricane season was an average Atlantic hurricane season, officially starting on June 1, 1976 and ending on November 30, dates which conventionally limit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones develop in the Atlantic Ocean. The season produced 23 tropical cyclones, of which ten developed into named storms; six became hurricanes, and two attained major hurricane status. The strongest hurricane of the season was Hurricane Belle, which reached Category 3 status on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale east of North Carolina; Belle later struck Long Island, New York as a Category 1 hurricane, causing $100 million in damage (1976 USD) and a total of five deaths across the New England region of the United States.