Hurricane season may have a few blasts left

By Patricia Zengerle

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The brutal 2005 hurricane season may
have more unpleasant shocks in store for coastal areas reeling
from an almost unprecedented run of vicious storms, including
deadly Hurricane Katrina and this weekend’s powerful Rita.

“We’re still in the peak of the season here, that goes for
another month or so. (It) makes me think that not only will we
have more storms and hurricanes, but we could have another
major hurricane or two,” said Max Mayfield, director of the
U.S. National Hurricane Center, on CBS’ “Face the Nation” on
Sunday.

The Atlantic hurricane season officially runs from June 1
to November 30, although the peak of the season ends in mid- to
late October. Each year produces an average of 11 tropical
storms or hurricanes, of which two become severe hurricanes.

But this year, due to warm seas and other conditions
favorable to storm development, forecasters had predicted up to
21 tropical storms or hurricanes.

There have been 17 so far, and five have been “major”
hurricanes, of Category 3 or higher on forecasters five-step
Saffir-Simpson intensity scale.

Katrina and Rita were among the most intense Category 5
hurricanes ever recorded. Rita made landfall in Texas as a
Category 3, Katrina hit Louisiana on August 29 as a Category 4.

Together, the two storms knocked out nearly all energy
production in the Gulf of Mexico and 30 percent of the nation’s
refining capacity onshore. Katrina killed more than 1,000
people and left New Orleans in ruins.

Mayfield said the Atlantic is in a cycle of more intense
storm activity, similar to what occurred in the 1950s, which
research meteorologists say could last another 10 to 20 years.

In 2004 there were 15 tropical storms or hurricanes in the
Atlantic. The busiest year recently was 1995, with 19.

Mayfield said this year and last seemed to have had far
more storms make landfall in the United States or Caribbean
than usual. “It seems like this year all but three or maybe
four of them have impacted land,” he said.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center downgraded Rita to a
tropical depression and its remnants were dumping heavy rain on
Arkansas as they moved north on Sunday.

The increased number of intense storms has fueled a debate
over whether global warming is raising the risk from
hurricanes, by raising sea temperatures and making them more
intense.