By LOIS KINDLE
Last year’s hurricane season reminded us how important it is to be prepared and to evacuate our homes when warned.
Hurricanes Debby, Helene, and Milton all impacted our area in 2024, but they differed in intensity, location and effects:
• In August, slow-moving Hurricane Debby passed by us offshore as it headed north to make landfall near Steinhatchee, causing significant storm surge, heavy rain and widespread flooding.
NOAA ILLUSTRATION
This chart shows the difference in storm surge impacts between hurricanes Helene and Milton in 2024. Helene traveled offshore parallel to the Florida coast before making landfall, while Milton followed a perpendicular track and then moved northeast across the state.
Sarasota and Manatee counties received 15 to 20 inches of rain, Sun City Center 9.94 inches and Riverview 8.04. The Category 1 storm also generated numerous tornadoes.
• Hurricane Helene struck our area at the end of September. The storm paralleled the Florida coast as it headed north and was far more intense than Debby. Massive in size, its gigantic wind field brought our area wind gusts of just above 70 mph and five to seven feet of storm surge. The damage in South Shore’s coastal communities was catastrophic.
“It was a much larger surge than we’d seen in our lifetime,” said Jennifer Hubbard, Warning Coordination Meteorologist for the National Weather Service Tampa Bay office in Ruskin. An unnamed Category 4 hurricane in 1921, brought an estimated 10 to 11 feet of storm surge into Tampa Bay.
NOAA SATELLITE PHOTO
Hurricane Milton, the strongest Atlantic hurricane of 2024, reached Category 5 intensity in the Gulf of Mexico before weakening to Category 3 at landfall Oct. 9 near Siesta Key. It brought torrential rainfall, winds of up to 120 mph and a record of 45 tornadoes, causing massive power outages and severe flooding.
After making landfall in Florida’s Big Bend area as a Category 4 hurricane, Helene traveled across the south all the way to Asheville, N.C., leaving behind a widespread path of destruction. It became one of the costliest hurricanes in U.S. history.
• Then, as if to add insult to injury, Hurricane Milton followed in October. The strongest Atlantic hurricane of the year reached Category 5 Intensity in the Gulf of America before weakening to Category 3 at landfall near Siesta Key. We experienced storm surge of one to two feet, more than 18 inches of rain in some areas and 70 to 80 mph winds. The storm spawned a record-breaking 45 tornadoes in south Florida, including an EF-3 tornado, and caused major flooding and huge power outages across the state.
“There was so much flooding from its eyewall north, the Withlacoochee River basin took two months to recede,” Hubbard said.
This season’s forecast
NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is forecasting a near-to-above-average hurricane season for 2025.
There’s a 60% chance it’ll be above-normal, 30% near-normal and only 10% chance below-normal.
There will be 13 to 19 named storms with winds of 39 mph or higher. Of those, six to 10 are predicted to become hurricanes with winds of 74 mph or higher. Three to five of them will reach major hurricane status (Category 3 or higher).
Factors contributing to this forecast include:
• Neither El Niño nor La Niña conditions are present, meaning the season is in neutral phase. When this happens during a high-activity era for hurricanes, an above-average hurricane activity can be expected.
• Warmer than average ocean temperatures (currently 80 to 85 degrees) in the Atlantic basin fuel hurricane development.
• There will be weaker wind shear, which allows hurricanes to develop and strengthen more easily.
• There’s a potential for higher activity from the West African Monsoon, which can contribute to the formation of stronger, long-lived Atlantic storms.
The message of all this is clear.
“Be prepared, have a plan listen, for evacuation orders and heed them,” Hubbard said. “If you live near a river, it’s also important to understand the risks of after-storm flooding of days to weeks.”
And as always, remember to run from the water and hide from the wind.
Hurricane supply kit essentials
If you haven’t already done so, now is the time to make an emergency plan for you and your family. This includes knowing your evacuation zone, where you’d go if need be, having several ways of receiving weather alerts and warnings, verifying your insurance coverage in advance, securing important documents in waterproof containers, strengthening your home and preparing a hurricane kit.
NOAA SATELLITE PHOTO
The eye of Hurricane Helene stayed offshore as it headed north last year but delivered storm surge of six to seven feet to South Shore’s coastal communities Sept. 26. A Category 4 hurricane when it made landfall near Perry, it continued north to wreck havoc all the way into the Carolinas.
Hurricane kit supplies include:
• A gallon of water per person per day for seven days
• Three to seven days of nonperishable foods
• Seven-day supply of food, medications and extra water for both people and pets
• NOAA weather radio with tone alert
• Battery-powered radio, extra batteries
• Battery-powered flashlight, extra batteries
• Cell phone and charger, low-cost, portable battery-powered charger
• Two-week supply of medications, including pain relievers
• Updated list of family meds/dosages; doctor and pharmacy phone numbers
• Manual can opener, disposable dishes and utensils
• Personal hygiene items
• Prescription eyeglasses, saline solution.
• First-aid kit
• Important documents: driver’s license, insurance policies, insurance agent’s name/phone number, etc.
• Moist towelettes, garbage bags and plastic ties for personal sanitation
• Matches in a waterproof container
• Cash and coins
• Full tank of gas
• Wrench or pliers to turn off utilities
For all kinds of additional information, visit https://tinyurl.com/bddj89w4/.