It only takes one storm to change someone’s life.The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released the 2022 hurricane season predictions last month, which calls for another above-average season. NOAA expects between 14 and 21 named storms, 6 to 10 of which potentially are hurricanes. Of those six to 10, three to six could become major hurricanes. “For an above normal, you are at two times more likely for a landfall on the east coast and twice as likely to have a major hurricane formation,” said Matthew Rosencrans, with NOAA Climate Prediction Center.For a hurricane season to be considered above average, forecasters predict between 11 and 30 named storms, or three to eight named storms becoming major hurricanes. Since 2000, NOAA has released 18 above-average seasons. The last time a below-average season was predicted was in 2015.These consistently above-average seasons are being noticed by more than just meteorologists, but by the public.”It used to be only one or two major ones, and now it’s like there are four or five major ones every year,” Bruce Beal said.Beal has lived in the metro for more than 15 years, but he said he remembers when he lived on the coast, he had to ride out Hurricane Camille.”Once you’ve been through a hurricane, you don’t forget it. You think about it a lot,” Beal said. “You kind of relive it sometimes and it brings memories back.”Bringing memories back over and over again and having to make a new life out of the pieces that are left. Aleisha Rockett knows this all too well. She lived in New Orleans for most of her life and just recently moved to the metro.”It was the last straw with my last storm that I endured, which was Oct. 1 of last year, with Hurricane Ida,” Rockett said.Rockett and her family were on vacation when Ida hit their home. They spent three weeks in Orlando and Jackson waiting to go back.”When we got to our home, there was no power for the two weeks we were gone. All the food was spoiled. We couldn’t get too much of anything done. We had to throw away a lot of things. We didn’t have a lot of water damage, but it was really no power, no energy,” Rockett said.The Rockett family has been significantly affected by three major hurricanes. The first was Hurricane Katrina.”We left just before the levees were broken. My mom and my sisters got out,” Rockett said. “We came back to water that was filled almost 3-feet tall in our apartment, so coming back to that, there was no salvaging anything.”After Katrina, her family relocated to Dallas for three years before returning to New Orleans. Shortly after returning, her family went through Hurricane Gustav in 2008. After Ida last year, she was ready for a change.”I wanted something different. I wanted my sons to see we can get out of New Orleans and have a different life, and you don’t have to go through those storms,” Rockett said. “You can only do that for so long.”One of the reasons for another above-average prediction is the trends. According to NOAA, trends have shown when a storm reaches hurricane strength, it’s more likely for it to become a major hurricane.Rosencrans said he expects to see a 2% to 11% increase in wind speeds over the next few decades, as well as an increase in rainfall.”Some models are showing we could get a 7% increase in rainfall within some of these systems,” Rosencrans said.With tropical systems reaching hundreds of miles from end to end, Rosencrans said hundreds of thousands of people inland are also impacted.”Inland flooding is a big hazard, and with the heavier rains and strong winds inland, you can get trees down and power outages that can last for days, even hundreds of miles inland from the coast,” Rosencrans said.NOAA recommends that those who visit or live on the coast use the quiet tropics to prepare. Tap here for information on hurricane preps.
It only takes one storm to change someone’s life.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released the 2022 hurricane season predictions last month, which calls for another above-average season. NOAA expects between 14 and 21 named storms, 6 to 10 of which potentially are hurricanes. Of those six to 10, three to six could become major hurricanes.
“For an above normal, you are at two times more likely for a landfall on the east coast and twice as likely to have a major hurricane formation,” said Matthew Rosencrans, with NOAA Climate Prediction Center.
For a hurricane season to be considered above average, forecasters predict between 11 and 30 named storms, or three to eight named storms becoming major hurricanes. Since 2000, NOAA has released 18 above-average seasons. The last time a below-average season was predicted was in 2015.
These consistently above-average seasons are being noticed by more than just meteorologists, but by the public.
“It used to be only one or two major ones, and now it’s like there are four or five major ones every year,” Bruce Beal said.
Beal has lived in the metro for more than 15 years, but he said he remembers when he lived on the coast, he had to ride out Hurricane Camille.
“Once you’ve been through a hurricane, you don’t forget it. You think about it a lot,” Beal said. “You kind of relive it sometimes and it brings memories back.”
Bringing memories back over and over again and having to make a new life out of the pieces that are left. Aleisha Rockett knows this all too well. She lived in New Orleans for most of her life and just recently moved to the metro.
“It was the last straw with my last storm that I endured, which was Oct. 1 of last year, with Hurricane Ida,” Rockett said.
Rockett and her family were on vacation when Ida hit their home. They spent three weeks in Orlando and Jackson waiting to go back.
“When we got to our home, there was no power for the two weeks we were gone. All the food was spoiled. We couldn’t get too much of anything done. We had to throw away a lot of things. We didn’t have a lot of water damage, but it was really no power, no energy,” Rockett said.
The Rockett family has been significantly affected by three major hurricanes. The first was Hurricane Katrina.
“We left just before the levees were broken. My mom and my sisters got out,” Rockett said. “We came back to water that was filled almost 3-feet tall in our apartment, so coming back to that, there was no salvaging anything.”
After Katrina, her family relocated to Dallas for three years before returning to New Orleans. Shortly after returning, her family went through Hurricane Gustav in 2008. After Ida last year, she was ready for a change.
“I wanted something different. I wanted my sons to see we can get out of New Orleans and have a different life, and you don’t have to go through those storms,” Rockett said. “You can only do that for so long.”
One of the reasons for another above-average prediction is the trends. According to NOAA, trends have shown when a storm reaches hurricane strength, it’s more likely for it to become a major hurricane.
Rosencrans said he expects to see a 2% to 11% increase in wind speeds over the next few decades, as well as an increase in rainfall.
“Some models are showing we could get a 7% increase in rainfall within some of these systems,” Rosencrans said.
With tropical systems reaching hundreds of miles from end to end, Rosencrans said hundreds of thousands of people inland are also impacted.
“Inland flooding is a big hazard, and with the heavier rains and strong winds inland, you can get trees down and power outages that can last for days, even hundreds of miles inland from the coast,” Rosencrans said.
NOAA recommends that those who visit or live on the coast use the quiet tropics to prepare. Tap here for information on hurricane preps.
