Miami – Government forecasters minimally reduced their prediction for the Atlantic hurricane season Thursday but said that up to nine hurricanes and up to 16 tropical storms are expected to form, still a busier-than-average season.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration maintained its estimate that three to five of the hurricanes will be major storms of Category 3 strength or stronger. The original report forecast up to 17 tropical storms, with up to 10 becoming hurricanes.
Despite the slight reductions and a harmless season so far, NOAA said atmospheric and oceanic conditions mean that the season likely will be more active than normal. On average, there are 10 named Atlantic storms and six hurricanes, three of them major.
“The early-season activity really doesn’t reflect what’s going to happen in the peak of the season,” said Gerry Bell, the lead seasonal hurricane forecaster at NOAA. “The fact that there’s been no hurricanes so far means absolutely nothing.”
Federal forecasters’ move Thursday follows that of Colorado State University hurricane researcher William Gray, who slightly lowered his forecast last week. Gray’s initial projection called for 17 named storms and nine hurricanes, five of them intense. He revised it to 15 named storms and eight hurricanes, four of them intense.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.
Teacher-astronaut helps inspect shuttle
Schoolteacher-turned-astronaut Barbara Morgan helped operate a 100-foot robot arm and extension boom in a hunt for damage on her first full day in orbit Thursday, as NASA said foam insulation may have hit the space shuttle at launch.
“Hey, it’s great being up here,” Morgan said in her first televised update from space.
Nine pieces of foam insulation broke off Endeavour’s fuel tank during liftoff Wednesday, and three pieces appeared to strike the shuttle, said John Shannon, chairman of the mission management team. None is believed to have been big enough to cause critical damage, he said.
The possible strike areas on Endeavour will receive special focus when astronauts aboard the international space station zoom in for pictures of the shuttle before this afternoon’s linkup.
Morgan, 55, a former elementary schoolteacher from Idaho, was Christa McAuliffe’s backup for the inaugural teacher-in- space flight aboard Challenger in 1986. Challenger blew up shortly after takeoff.
DEKALB, Ill.
Monster truck crashes into crowd, injuring 9
A monster truck performing stunts in front of an auto-parts store plowed into a crowd of spectators Thursday, injuring at least nine people, officials said.
A mother and one child were in serious condition, officials said. The seven others were treated and released by Thursday night.
The demonstration, part of a monster truck tour sponsored by Napa Auto Parts, featured the truck driving over and crushing four cars.
“After its third or fourth attempt of rolling over the cars and getting back down to the street it appeared to have lost control and at that point careened off to the left into part of the crowd that was watching the event,” said City Manager Mark Biernacki.
GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala
Landslide slams home, killing five children
Five children were killed Thursday when a landslide slammed into their cinder-block house at the bottom of a ravine outside Guatemala City.
The victims, all members of the same family, were between the ages of 6 and 15, fire department spokesman Mario Cruz said.
The parents were in another room and were protected from the force of the impact by an armoire. They survived with only slight injuries.
SAN DIEGO
Mexican teens prevail in geography contest
A trio of Mexican teenagers won the eighth National Geographic World Championship on Thursday, dethroning the United States, a four-time champion.
To win, they had to name the historic site carved from sandstone in 1200 B.C. that features two massive temples and statues of an ancient ruler. The teens nailed the answer – the Egyptian monument Abu Simbel.
It was the first finals appearance for Mexico. Emanuel Johansen Campos, 15, of Tejalpa, Carlos Franco Ruiz, 14, of Zapotlan de Juarez and team captain Angel Aliseda Alonso, 16, of Guadalajara had help from a translator in the contest, which was held in English.
PAPEETE, Tahiti
Tahiti-bound airplane carrying 20 crashes
A plane carrying 20 people crashed into the sea shortly after takeoff Thursday from the French Polynesian island of Moorea, killing at least 14 of those on board, officials said.
The Tahiti-bound Twin Otter DHC6 turboprop, with 19 passengers and a pilot, went down around noon, during what is typically a seven-minute flight, Air Moorea officials said.
France’s high commission on Tahiti said 14 bodies had been recovered. No survivors had been found so far.
The cause of the crash would be investigated, officials said.
