Early predictions are in...another active hurricane season ahead

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - The last thing we wanted to hear, especially after the record-setting Atlantic hurricane season last year, is that we could see another above-normal season this summer.

These are the paths of the hurricanes in 2020.(WAFB)

Last year’s record-breaking season had 30 named storms. Twelve made landfall in the US and six were classified as major hurricanes. It was the second time in recorded history that the National Hurricane Center used every name on the storm name list. It even prompted the NHC to consider pushing up the start of hurricane season from June 1 to May 15.

Initial 2021 Hurricane Season Outlook(WAFB)

The first official hurricane prediction came out on April 8 from Colorado State University, generally accepted as one of the authorities in hurricane prediction. Its forecast suggests we could be in for another busy season this summer, with 17 named storms, substantially higher than the 12-storm average.

Of those 17, eight are expected to become hurricanes, and four of those major, meaning category three and higher. If we do record 17 named storms, that would get us out to the “R” storm. Remember, this doesn’t say anything about how many will make a US landfall, much less a Gulf coast landfall.

Time will tell.

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