From rapidly intensifying storms to destruction hundreds of miles inland, the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season has been a long and worrisome one. But the season ends this Saturday, Nov. 30th.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says there were 18 named storms this year with 11 becoming hurricanes. Nearly half of those intensified into major hurricanes with winds of more than 111 mph.
“As hurricanes and tropical cyclones continue to unleash deadly and destructive forces, it’s clear that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s critical science and services are needed more than ever by communities,” said NOAA Administrator, Rick Spinrad, Ph.D.
NOAA says this year’s numbers are above average as expected. But what was not expected was how many storms formed after the peak of hurricane season in September. There were 12, seven of which did become hurricanes. NOAA says that’s the most on record for that particular time period.
This year was also the first time since 2019 that the Atlantic saw multiple category five hurricanes whip up in a single season.
Perhaps the most memorable for the Carolinas was Hurricane Helene which made landfall along the Gulf Coast of Florida as a Category-4 storm. It had been downgraded to a tropical storm by the time it reached South Carolina, yet it was powerful enough to kill 49 people, surpassing Hurricane Hugo as the state’s deadliest storm.
In North Carolina, Helene took an even greater toll as it unleased catastrophic flooding across the southern Appalachians. More than 100 people lost their lives, bringing the overall death toll, including Florida, to more than 230 people. Forecasters say it was the deadliest hurricane to hit the U.S. since Katrina twenty years ago.
