This is the week everyone knew was coming, but didn’t know when. Even with a calendar, I couldn’t have accurately predicted this week would arrive on August 29, as it did, because “this week” is the one that announces the arrival of the first serious hurricane.
Along came Earl (below), and the hurricane season in the Caribbean is underway in a big way, which in the cruise line business means posting weather advisories for all concerned.
So far, it’s been a good season for hurricanes. Right. What’s a “good” season for hurricanes, since there is never anything “good” about them? They’re running behind schedule, and that’s good news…I guess. Only once since 2000 have the experts been too low in their estimates for a hurricane season.
When this one began on June 1, analysts were predicting 2010 could rival 2005, the year of Katrina. Last week, the fifth anniversary of Katrina passed, and there had only been two storms classed as hurricanes (Alex and Danielle) and both were pretty much spent by the time they made landfall.
You may also have noticed that, since Katrina starts with K, it was the 11th storm of 2005 and Earl is the 5th of 2010. So much for this being a worse hurricane year than the devastation of 2005…so far. While the season is three months old, it does still have two months to go.
My able associate (her name is Nancy) was doing some hurricane research on her computer this week when she tried to put it all in some kind of perspective. She even found something that is good about hurricanes.
“I remember,” she said, “when a hurricane was a drink you’d get at Jimmy Buffet’s restaurants.”