Preparing for hurricane season as we cope with COVID-19

Hurricane Katrina heading towards New Orleans, Louisiana, in 2005. Elements of this image furnished by NASA. (Photo: lavizzara/Shutterstock)

With 18 named storms, the 2019 hurricane season battered homes and businesses along the Eastern seaboard and Gulf Coasts. Hurricane Dorian, the season’s largest storm, resulted in insured losses estimated between $500 million and $1.6 billion. Tropical Storm Imelda, the season’s weakest tropical storm to make landfall in the U.S., accounted for about $2 billion in damages after flooding Texas.

This year, researchers are expecting a more active season than usual, forecasting around 140 percent more activity than the average season. Hurricane forecasters at Colorado State University have predicted 16 named tropical storms, with eight of those becoming hurricanes. Of those eight, four are expected to become major hurricanes.