Here we go again : less than two months until hurricane season and now it is official; the storm names to be used in 2006 have been announced.
"Alberto" will lead the parade of boys and girls this year with the 21st and last little darling being "William". Biblical "Isaac" is on the list, genderless "Leslie", ooh-la-la "Nadine", Teutonic "Oscar", "Gordon" (will he disappear in a flash?), and "Helene" with an "e".
One thing is certain; many more of these names will be used than in the past.
Here in Central Florida we are finally beginning to acknowledge that what the National Weather Service tells us just possibly might be true : the Atlantic Ocean is in a period of increased hurricane activity (meaning more and stronger tropical storms and hurricanes) that is predicted to last another ten years or longer.
Two years ago (2004) we were hit with Charley, Frances and Jeanne in quick succession. At first it was scary and exciting. At the end of the season it was sweaty and fatiguing. When the hurricane season finally ended the full impact hadn't reached us.
Yes, we had neighborhoods under blue tarps. Our trailer parks (excuse me, mobile home communities) were expecting double digit increases in insurance premiums. But basically it was over, wasn't it?
Apparently not. Early in 2005 I decided to replace a glass sliding door opening onto the back patio with a new set of French doors. That was when I discovered the changes in the building code. It wasn't enough that the new doors had glass with a wind-resistant factor of 130 mph. They also had to be able to withstand a piece of 2x4 slamming into them at the same speed. No glass doors (other than very, very "special order") can promise that, so storm shutters had to be installed as well.
A bowfront window can no longer simply protrude from the front of a house; it must be supported top and bottom by solid structure. Garage doors have new requirements, and many items that formerly could be installed by the homeowner with no regulation now require a building permit.
I never did get to test my hurricane shutters. We had no direct visits in this area in 2005. With a certain smugness I told myself, "Better safe than sorry." Then in August the New Orleans area and Mississippi were hit. Suddenly hurricanes became frighteningly real again.
Today, with the official hurricane season starting on June 1, almost 100, 000 FEMA trailers (yes, trailers, not mobile homes) are the only roofs over the heads of last year's hurricane victims. Mobile homes and trailers are evacuated sooner and more surely than residential construction. Many of the Katrina survivors living in trailers do not own private transportation to use in evacuation. Any hurricane warning is going to throw an additional burden on public agencies.
Additionally, the U.S. Geological Survey warns that last year's storms destroyed many of the barrier islands and wetlands that offered mainland coastal areas some protection from hurricane damage. By all accounts, 2006 will have a busy and harrowing hurricane season.
Storm names for 2006 are: Alberto - Beryl - Chris - Debby - Ernesto - Florence - Gordon - Helene - Isaac - Joyce - Kirk - Leslie - Michael - Nadine - Oscar - Patty - Rafael - Sandy - Tony - Valerie - William.
Source: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)