MIAMI — It might be tempting the weather gods to point this out, but this has been a dud of a hurricane season so far. Only two hurricanes have formed in the Atlantic over the past three months, and neither hit the U.S.
“I’m glad that I didn’t have to go out and get anything — yet,” said Lissette Galiana, who was shopping at a Wal-Mart in suburban Miami on Friday, around what is usually the peak of the Atlantic hurricane season. “There’s always a chance.”
Forecasters attribute the calm to a weak El Niño, the periodic warming of the central Pacific Ocean. It is producing strong upper-level winds out of the west that are shearing off the tops of thunderstorm clouds that can develop into hurricanes.
Of course, the season has nearly 2 1/2 months to go, and forecasters and emergency planners are warning people not to let their guard down.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s forecast before the June 1 start of the Atlantic season called for nine to 14 named tropical storms, with four to seven of them becoming hurricanes. No tropical storms took shape until Aug. 15, when Ana formed. Five more have developed since then. Two of those tropical storms strengthened into Hurricanes Bill and Fred.
