All About HurricanesAll About HurricanesHurricanes are part of a family of weather systems known as "tropical cyclones." The word hurricane is from the West Indian word hurricane, meaning "big wind." A hurricane begins its life as a disorganized storm system which forms over warm, tropical waters in the Atlantic. When the storm system become more organized, it is classified as a "tropical depression," and given a number by the National Hurricane Center. If the winds in a tropical depression grow in intensity to 40mph, it is re- classified as a "tropical storm," and it receives a name. When the winds in the storm reach 75mph (120kph), the storm is upgraded to a hurricane.
The winds of a hurricane are structured around a central "eye", which is an area that is free of clouds and relatively calm. Around this "eye" area, storm clouds wrap in a counter-clockwise motion. This "eyewall" of clouds, wind and rain, is the most destructive part of the storm. In fact, it is the eyewall that creates the eye, since the rapid spinning clouds in the wall reduce the pressure in the eye and suck out any clouds that may be there.
Hurricanes are usually compact storms, with maximum wind velocities extending out 10 to 100km from the eye. Of course, one can still experience gale-force winds as much as 300 miles out from the eye, which is why everyone in the Gulf Coast area is concerned when a hurricane comes a-calling.
We New Orleanians worry about and prepare for hurricanes simply because we are all too aware of the destructive force of these storms. When a hurricane starts brewing off in the islands, or worse yet, originates in the Gulf, it becomes the lead weather item on the evening news, and the coordinates of the storm are regularly reported on the weather radio frequencies.
There are two main geographic reasons the Gulf Coast is vulnerable. First, our proximity to tropical waters puts us in the path of the storms. Second, the waters of the Gulf are warmer than those of the Atlantic, which is attractive to the storms. The entire Gulf region is a magnet for storms looking for a warm place to grow.
The Gulf Coast, particularly Louisiana and Mississippi, have learned some hard lessons about hurricanes. Since 1965, the area has been hit hard by three very serious storms, as well as a number of minor ones. In 1965, Hurricane Betsy, after hitting the tip of Florida and wiping out the Keys, came straight up the mouth of the Mississippi and flooded the city of New Orleans and the low-lying parishes south of the city. In 1969, Hurricane Camille came in on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, all but destroying everything on the coast with its 200+ mph winds and 25+foot tidal surge. In 1992, Hurricane Andrew, after causing a devastating amount of damage in Southern Florida, came ashore west of New Orleans, spawning tornadoes that contributed to the massive amount of destruction.
In other words, we’ve been there before. Like the folks who live on the San Andreas Fault in California, we accept the possibility that hurricanes can cause problems for us. Unlike the Californians, we can and do take a number of steps to prepare for the storms and minimize their impact on life and property.
Hurricane season officially runs from June 1st to November 30th. While storms develop both early and late in the season, the late summer to early fall tends to be the time when the area is most vulnerable. Names for this year’s hurricanes Time was when all hurricanes were given women’s names. The notion was that the storms are totally unpredictable, just like women. That was changed in 1991, and now both male and female names are used. Here are the names for 1996:
Experts predict that there will be 11 Atlantic storms this year, and that 7 of those will become hurricanes. Of those seven, two are predicted to be class 4 or 5 (at least 111 mph winds).
Move On to "Preparing for a Hurricane," the next file in this series.
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