El Niño gets a lot of publicity in relation to major storms, such as Hurricane Patricia, or severe blizzards, but El Niño can have an impact on day-to-day weather as well, explains Elaine Montgomery-Baisden, vice president and chief underwriting officer, Personal Insurance, for Travelers.
A strong El Niño system could elongate the amount of time that different types of weather will continue. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), there is an approximately 95% chance that the current El Niño will continue through the Northern Hemisphere winter of 2015–16, gradually weakening through spring 2016.
What is "El Niño"? NOAA defines it as a weather pattern characterized by unusually warm ocean temperatures in the Equatorial Pacific, as opposed to La Niña, which is characterized by unusually cold ocean temperatures in the Equatorial Pacific. El Niño is credited (or blamed) for increased rainfall across the southern tier of the U.S., which has caused destructive flooding, and for drought in the West Pacific.
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Rosalie Donlon
Rosalie Donlon is the editor in chief of ALM's insurance and tax publications, including NU Property & Casualty magazine and NU PropertyCasualty360.com. You can contact her at [email protected].
