A two-layer model of the upper ocean is used to simulate the thermal response to hurricane passage. Mixed layer temperature and depth equations similar to those of Kraus and Turner (1967) and Denman (1973) are used to describe the upper layer. Horizontal and vertical advection are calculated from Ekman theory, with an empirical partitioning of the input stress between the mechanical generation and entrainment mixing terms. A compensating return flow below the Ekman depth, but within the upper 100 m of the seasonal thermocline, is imposed. The surface heat and momentum fluxes are calculated with the symmetrical hurricane model of Elsberry et al. (1974). The response to both a stationary and a moving hurricane of constant intensity is simulated. The model produces regions of near-surface cooling, subsurface cooling induced by upwelling, and an intermediate layer of warming due to entrainment and convective mixing. A decrease in mixed layer depth near the center and an increase outside the radius of maximum winds are obtained. Oceanic heat budget calculations suggest that advective processes, rather than heat loss to the storm, play the dominant role in modifying the ocean thermal structure near the center of the storm. Effects of varying both oceanic and atmospheric model parameters are tested to illustrate the sensitivity of the model.