Hurricane Forecast 2021

Southwest Louisiana’s own Ben Terry at KPLC-TV chimes in on the 2021 Hurricane Forecast:

It should come as no shock that forecasts call for another above average hurricane season, with Colorado State University’s initial forecast calling 17 named storms, eight hurricanes, with four of those becoming category 3 or greater in intensity. 

The new “climate normals”, a 30-year average between 1991 and 2020 also reflect an increase in the number of storms in any given year, with the new numbers showing an average of 14 named storms, seven hurricanes and three major hurricanes making up a normal Atlantic hurricane season. These numbers increased from the normal values used in previous years that indicated a normal hurricane season consisted of 12 named storms, six hurricanes and two to three major hurricanes. 

2020 was one for the record books with 30 named storms, 13 hurricanes and six major hurricanes, far exceeding any seasonal forecast. Even though we ended up with historic numbers in the 2020 season, only two of those storms, Laura and Delta, had direct impacts on Southwest Louisiana. Unfortunately, those were two of the stronger storms to make landfall in the U.S. just six weeks and 12 miles apart from each other.  

While there is no skill in forecasting where or if storms will strike the U.S. coastline, there is also no way to know if the odds will be in our favor this hurricane season either. Your best plan would be not to fret over the forecasted numbers, but rather stay prepared and informed this hurricane season, because it only takes one storm regardless of how busy or quiet the season is overall. 

2021 Hurricane Names

Did you know . . .

Since 1953, Atlantic tropical storms have been named from lists originated by the National Hurricane Center and are recycled every six years. If a storm is deemed too deadly or costly, it is retired from the list and replaced. We won’t be seeing a Hurricane Rita or Laura again! Until 1979, the Atlantic storms were all given female names. Since then, women’s and men’s names alternate.

As of this year, in the event there are more than 21 named storms in one season, the additional storms will no longer be given Greek alphabet names but will be named from an alternate list of names approved by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

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