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El Nino or Not, A Gulf Storm Still Possible This Season

NOAA

Doctor Phil Klotsbach from Colorado state, says warmer than normal water in the pacific ocean is likely to suppress hurricane activity in the Atlantic basin again this year. And maybe even moreso than last year.A less-active seasonal forecast tends to cause concern among many who have the task of keeping the public prepared for a storm. Their annual reminder to us is that no matter the forecast for the number of storms, it still only takes one to have an impact. And that was certainly on the mind of national hurricane director Rick Knabb.

Dr. Knabb was also quick to point out that in 1983, there were fewer storms that season than projected by Colorado state for 2015, but one very deadly and costly one - hurricane Alisha - slamming in to Houston, Texas in august of that year. Alisha was a storm that grew from a depression to a major hurricane in less than three days and formed only a few hundred miles from the coast, leaving little time for residents of Texas to prepare. When asked if a storm like Alisha is more or less likely to form in an el nino season, Dr. Klotzbach said the science can't say.

The season starts june 1st, and the florida public radio emergency network will be your source of round-the-clock storm coverage this year, right here on [your station's name].