Naming progresses through the year with names assigned in alphabetical order. Just as no New York Yankee will ever again wear No. Hurricanes and tropical storms in each year are named alphabetically with names of alternating gender. “I think the U.S. proposed it again to WMO in 2010, and although I don’t have a record of it being rejected again, clearly it didn’t get approved,” Franklin said. It’s highly likely meteorologists will have to dip into the Greek alphabet for additional storm names — but some fear this convention, as is, could be problematic. But could a Greek alphabet letter be retired? The second storm is given the name that begins with a "B." In 2005, a record-breaking year of devastating hurricanes, we made it through six Greek letters. “What got reported back was something along the lines of, ‘We like the Greek alphabet because it’s special, it’s different, it conveys the uniqueness of having exceeded the regular alphabet,’ which didn’t strike me as a particularly logical reason,” said Franklin. Their replacement names are now on the 2005 list of hurricane names with after them. “I assume we’ll get to the Greek alphabet,” said Franklin. Considering we may tap into the Greek alphabet sooner this year than in 2005, when Tropical Storm Alpha formed on Oct. 22, there is a chance we dive deeper into the Greek alphabet. The last time we went through all the letters of the alphabet and moved on to the Greek alphabet was 2005. That year, Katrina, Rita and Wilma were all retired. The Atlantic hurricane season this year has stirred up storms at such a rapid rate that there is now only one entry — Wilfred — left on the 21-name list that meteorologists use for each season. She graduated from Texas State University with a degree in electronic media. Dawn is a Digital Content Editor who has been with Graham Media Group since April 2013. At the NOAA Hurricane Conference, held in November 2005, U.S. weather officials approved the measure for forwarding to the World Meteorological Organization. Not exactly. Katrina, for example, was replaced with Katia when the list cycled back in 2011. There has never been an Atlantic hurricane … But when the United States sent delegates to the corresponding international meeting the following spring, the proposal was rejected. Ten years later, more needs to be done to modernize the Army Corps of Engineers, promote natural flood protection, and reduce reliance on levees. Whenever, there is a devastating hurricane (usually one that is a major hurricane, and has caused significant damage) in any portion of the Atlantic Basin, that hurricane's name is retired from the list for at least ten years, and probably forever so that future names are not confused with it. “Just hearing those names associated with an approaching storm would cause some people to panic.”. This naming convention worked well in 2005, but with the looming likelihood it will be used again this year, meteorologists have some concerns with the practice. There will never be another Andrew, Hugo, Katrina, or Sandy. The WMO “decided that if a significant storm designated by a letter of the Greek Alphabet, in either the Atlantic or eastern North Pacific Basin, was considered worthy of being ‘retired’, it would be included in the list of retired names with the year of occurrence and other details, but that the particular letter in the Greek Alphabet would continue to be available for use in the future,” the article stated. The 22nd storm would be named Tropical Storm Alpha, the 23rd would be Tropical Storm Beta, and so on. Preventing Another “Unnatural Disaster” Ten Years After Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was not just a natural disaster – it was a failure of man. We reached out to the National Hurricane Center to find out. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, Atlantic storms were only assigned female names. “I think there was a kind of thinking, ‘We’ll deal with the [Greek letter] retirement issue if it ever comes up,’ ” said Franklin of the WMO’s decision, but he has a suspicion it may enter the conversation again this year. In 1954, Carol and Hazel were the first hurricane retirees. While covering Hurricane Katrina ripping through New Orleans five years ago, it struck me how the individual events that unfolded in the aftermath echoed similar tragedies I had photographed around the globe. Another tropical storm formed Monday in the Atlantic Ocean, bringing this already-busy hurricane season closer to an all-time record. The tropical depression that became Hurricane Katrina formed over the Bahamas on August 23, 2005, and meteorologists were soon able to warn people in the Gulf Coast states that a major storm was on its way. The deadliest storm to have its name retired was Hurricane Mitch, which caused over 10,000 fatalities when it struck Central America during October 1998. This is the MOST retired names for a single year ever! Katrina, for example, was replaced with Katia … So, despite the damage Delta may leave behind, it will still remain an option for use in the future -- for now, anyway. Naming hurricanes and typhoons is a relatively new thing. “Even though it will be associated with this disaster, I think there are enough other associations that it will continue to be a popular name.” That was the case with Scarlett and Stephen Billis… The use of easily remembered names greatly reduces confusionwhen two or moretropical storms occur at the same time. U.S. Hurricane Katrina Louisiana Weather Images from space captured the girth of Hurricane Laura as it moved through the Gulf Coast this week, headed for the border of Louisiana and Texas. Beta attained major hurricane status in late October, but it weakened slightly to a Category 2 before making landfall in Nicaragua. It presents an unusual case that, before 2020, hadn’t been thought about much. That year, six storms were assigned Greek letters for names. “If we have a bad one and the name has to be retired, I think [the issue] has to be taken up again. There's actually a worldwide organization that decides on lists of names to be used for tropical cyclones. Twenty tropical storms and hurricanes have already been named in the Atlantic in 2020, with months left to go before the oceans finally settle. Louisiana residents who are still recovering from the devastation of a powerful hurricane less than two months ago braced for another hit as Hurricane Delta steamed north through the Gulf on Thursday after swiping Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, the Associated Press reported. “It strengthened from a tropical depression to a Category 4 storm in just over a day,” Meteorologist Paul Gross said. Katrina Stalled over the Gulf of Mexico, gaining strength. The Greek alphabet has only been utilized once before, during the infamous hurricane season of 2005. We just don't know when. Dawn Jorgenson, Digital Content Editor, Graham Media Group. These names, a bank reserved only for the “extra” storms during overactive seasons such as 2005 or 2020, would be easy to replace if one were retired. However, up to this point, there’s never been reason to consider retiring a Greek letter. It really only started in the early 20th century. Some Atlantic Basin hurricanes have had their names retired. Epsilon, the 26th named storm of … If you need help with the Public File, call 210-351-1241. Therefore, the “name” is also just the letter. “They do not retire Greek alphabet storm names -- at least so far,” Gross said. Among them is James Franklin, former chief of the hurricane specialist unit at the National Hurricane Center. The list from 2018 will be used again in 2024. I am sure that a Katrina like storm will hit the area sometime in the future. Some are even hoping the tradition will be revamped entirely. After moving through the Yucatan Peninsula on Wednesday, and now headed straight for the U.S., the storm is expected to grow, and likely put people and places in danger. Five tropical cyclones pack the Atlantic for only the second time on record. For example, one hurricane canbe moving slowly westward in the Gulf of Mexico, while at exactlythe same time another hurricane can be moving rapidly northward alongthe Atlantic coast. Laura. “I’m going to guess it’s going to come up again,” he said. There is only one documented time before that in which we had to do so. Many are aware that intense, destructive, deadly hurricane names are retired from name lists that are recycled for tropical cyclones. There is no particular person for whom Hurricane Katrina was named. It was like several stories in one – a hurricane of course, but there was little typical hurricane damage in the city. For that reason, the World Meteorological Organization develops a list of names that are assigned in alphabetical order to tropical storms as they are discovered in each hurricane season. A Greek letter, on the contrary, has no replacement. In 2005, five storm names, including Katrina, were retired – the most for a single season. “It intensified at twice the minimum rate needed to qualify as ‘rapid intensification.’”. 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