The 2016 Atlantic Hurricane Season is upon us, and things are already not looking good. We already had a named storm in January, Hurricane Alex, and the main season looks like it will be average to above average in severity. While the impacts from the year’s El Nino and La Nina are still up for debate, most experts agree that the 2016 hurricane season will be as active as 2012.
The official start of the 2016 season is June 1 and runs through November 30. In other words, the season is quickly approaching. The experts do not know when these storms will come. All they know is that the hurricanes will happen. They do not even know how strong the storms will get once they hit the coastline. Thus, you must take some precaution and prepare for the coming season. Fortunately, you can use the following predictions to make the appropriate adjustments to your disaster recovery plan.
2016 Hurricane Season as Strong as 2012
It all comes down to what the El Nino and La Nina conditions out in the Pacific are doing. Normally, El Nino kills hurricanes, but, with El Nino weakening, that could change this year. No one really knows how long the transition to La Nina will take, making predictions for more than a week or two questionable at best. However, data from the past six years with similar conditions make most weather scientists agree to the following predictions:
- 50 percent chance of a major storm hitting the U.S. coast
- 30percent chance that a major storm will hit the East Coast
- 29 percent chance for a major storm to hit the Gulf Coast
- 57 percent chance for a tropical storm to hit the Gulf Coast
- 41 percent chance that a Category 1 or 2 storm will hit the Gulf Coast
These numbers tell us that the Gulf Coast will get hit by a hurricane this year.We do not know when the storm will hit, but we can look at the predicted storm numbers to get an idea of how many storms will head our way.
| Average | CSU | Weather Channel | |
| Named Storms | 12 | 13 | 14 |
| Hurricanes | 6 | 6 | 8 |
| Category 3 or higher | 3 | 2 | 3 |
Source: The Weather Channel
While there is no link between the number of storms and the number of landfalls, higher storm numbers make landfall more likely than not. These predictions say we are coming out of the quiet period that reigned for the last couple of years, and you can expect at least one storm hitting the coast somewhere. However, 2016 could still turn out like 2010 which produced 19 storms that never made landfall. The only thing you can do is to prepare yourself and your business for the worse case scenarios and hope you never have to use those plans.
2016 Hurricane Names
Either way, the transition from El Nino to La Nina could change everything. The experts do not know when the change will occur, but they do know it will occur during the hurricane season. This is why you need to pay attention whenever the following storm names start trending this year.
- Alex
- Bonnie
- Colin
- Danielle
- Earl
- Fiona
- Gaston
- Hermine
- Ian
- Julia
- Karl
- Lisa
- Matthew
- Nicole
- Otto
- Paula
- Richard
- Shary
- Tobias
- Virginie
- Walter
Since Hurricane Alex had already formed in January, you could say we entered the 2016 hurricane season early. With the main hurricane season just days away, a new hurricane could pop up as soon as tomorrow or as late as a few weeks from now, and there is already a disturbance out in the Atlantic Ocean. These storms can strike with little warning if you are not prepared for them.
To learn how to prepare for the impending season, follow our blog for tips and strategies that will keep your business operating and homes protected from whatever nature decides to throw our way.
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