Ana, Bill, Claudette, Danny, Elsa, Fred, and Grace; say hello to Hurricane Season

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

The lightning lit up the dark sky. The hailstones clattered to the ground like marbles spilling out of a box. The thunder rumbled, the wind howled ruthlessly and the angry water that had begun to flood your house was smacking across your shins. Yep, there was no denying it; it was hurricane season.

NASA has come out boldly to say that hurricanes are the most violent storms on Earth. As Caribbeans, many of us, if you were born on the islands have experienced a hurricane, and you can admit, it is a pretty scary experience. The question is, what do we know about these violent, tumultuous storms?

Just two ingredients fuel hurricanes: heat and water. It begins over the warm waters above the equator, where the air above the ocean’s surface takes in heat and moisture. As the hot air rises, it leaves a lower pressure region below it. Over and over again, this process repeats; air from higher-pressure areas moves into the lower pressure area, heats up, and rises, in turn, producing swirls in the air. Eventually, the hot air gets high enough into the atmosphere; it cools off and condenses into clouds. The growing, swirling vortex of air and clouds grows and grows.

Welcome hurricane season. Hurricanes are tropical cyclones. When a tropical cyclone’s sustained winds reach 39 to 73 mph (63 to 118 km/h), it is considered a tropical storm and then it gets a name. The name is selected from a list put out by the World Meteorological Organization. As these winds get more intense – 74 to 95 mph (119 to 153 km/h) – that storm becomes a Category 1 hurricane.

According to the Saffir-Simpson, sustained winds linked to categories 2 through 5 hurricanes are:

• Category 2: 96 to 110 mph (154 to 177 km/h)
• Category 3: 111 to 129 mph (178 to 208 km/h)
• Category 4: 130 to 156 mph (209 to 251 km/h)
• Category 5: 157 mph or higher (252 km/h or higher)

Since the 1980s, the intensity, frequency and duration of North Atlantic hurricanes have increased; and although scientists don’t expect this season to be as busy as last year, it only takes one storm to devastate an island.

Scientists are predicting that the Atlantic will likely be hit with a higher-than-average number of storms, and that the Central Pacific will likely have an average or below-average number of storms, with only about two to five tropical cyclones expected to form.

On May 20^th, 2021, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) released a statement about this year’s hurricane season. There is a 60% chance that the Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from Tuesday (June 1^st) to November 30^th, will be an “above-normal” season. The season will likely bring 13 to 20 named storms, or storms with winds of 39 mph (63 km/h) or higher. Of those storms, six to ten could become hurricanes with winds of 74 mph (119 km/h) or higher, with three to five becoming “major” hurricanes with winds of 111 mph (179 km/h) or higher.

So what are we going to be naming these forces from above this year? This year’s first Atlantic storm will be named “Ana,” the second “Bill,” followed by “Claudette, Danny, Elsa, Fred, Grace” and so on; the last storm on the list is “Wanda,”

See, now you are prepared and ready, and you can share this with members of your family that live on the islands. Prior preparation will always prevent poor performance.