Forcasters Expect Active Storm season:
Federal forecasters this morning predicted another active hurricane season beginning June 1.
They said there will be 13 to 16 named storms that will strike the Atlantic Basin, including four to six major hurricanes.
“We’re forecasting an extreme situation,” said Jeff Orrock, warning coordinator for the National Weather Service’s Raleigh office.
Orrock said the Atlantic Basin, which includes the southeastern U.S. coast and the Gulf of Mexico, is in the midst of an 25-year active tropical storm cycle that started in 1995. For 2006, Orrock said federal forecasters are predicting:
— 13 to 16 named storms. Eleven named storms is the average. In 2005, there were 26, a record.
— 8 to 10 hurricanes. Six is the annual average. There were 15 in 2005.
— Four to six major hurricanes. These storms will be category 3 or higher, packing at least 111-mph winds. Two is the annual average. There were seven in 2006, including Katrina.
You just know it will be blamed on Bush not signing Kyoto, right?
The sad part is that, as usual, people will not heed the warnings, will not evactuate, and will not prepare, despite what happened last year. Happens all the time.
“The message we are trying to get across is that people have to take some responsibility for the own safety and well-being,” said Bryan Beatty, secretary of the N.C. Department of Crime Control and Public Safety. “In a catastrophic event, government can’t get to everyone immediately.”
In other words, if you see one maybe sort might be coming your way, better to be safe then sorry.
