The Atlantic hurricane season is officially from June 1 to November 30, with a peak season from August through October. The maximum activity is in early to mid September.
There is nothing magical in these dates, and hurricanes have occurred outside of these six months, but these dates were selected to encompass over 97% of tropical activity.
2012 Hurricane Season Forecast:
For the 2012 hurricane season, NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center projects 12 to 17 named storms (top winds of 39 mph or higher), including 5 to 8 hurricanes (top winds of 74 mph or higher), of which 2 to 3 could be major hurricanes (Category 3, 4 or 5; winds of at least 111 mph).
Based on the period 1981-2010, an average season produces 12 named storms with six hurricanes, including three major hurricanes.
Information Resources:
NOAA’s National Hurricane Center provides the latest weather forecasts, public advisories, tracking maps, watches and warnings, and satellite imagery of tropical storms an dhurricanes at:
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/
The "Get a Gameplan" hurricane preparedness campaign provides information and tools residents need to prepare for a possible hurricane in their area:
http://www.getagameplan.org/
A directory list of Parish Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness offices is available at:
http://www.ohsep.louisiana.gov/parish/parishoepnumbers.htm
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provides information on preparing for a hurricane at:
http://www.ready.gov/hurricanes
En Espanol:
http://www.ready.gov/translations/spanish/america/beinformed/hurricanes.html
