Many Maryland residents still remember the devastation of Hurricane Agnes, which struck 35 years ago this June, dumping nearly 20 inches of rain in five days, killing 122 people and causing more than $3 billion in damage.
Eighteen years earlier, Hurricane Hazel, labeled as one of the worst hurricanes of the 20th century, raked the region with winds up to 80 mph.
More recently, Hurricane Isabel slammed into the region in September 2003. This massive storm brought with it a record storm surge in the Chesapeake Bay, which paired with rain-swollen riversto blanket parts of Fell?s Point and the Inner Harbor in floodwaters.
Downtown Annapolis residents took to canoes and inflatable rafts as the water rose well above sidewalks and poured into shops.
Isabel cost Maryland roughly $410 million and took the life of at least one person, who drowned from the storm surge.
Today, as the region anticipates an active Atlantic hurricane season, weather and emergency management officials are urging residents to be prepared.
“The natural hazards are out there and fresh in everybody?s minds,” said Brig. Gen. David Johnson, director of the National Weather Service.
Last year was predicted to be an active hurricane season, but the wind patterns associated with the warm-water current known as El Nino squashed hurricane conditions, said Bill Proenza, director of the National Hurricane Center.
This year, El Nino is gone, and experts are expecting more typical hurricane activity, he said.
The National Weather Service will present its official outlook for the 2007 season, which starts June 1, during the last week in May.
But researchers from Colorado State University last week predicted a “very active” season in the Atlantic, with an expected 17 named storms, nine of which will be hurricanes.
“Regardless of the outlook, we have to be prepared,” Proenza said, adding any outlook is just that ? a prediction.
Fifty-three percent of Americans live within 50 miles of a coast, he said. As Americans are drawn to water, few grasp the dangers brought on by coastal storms.
“On the coastal areas, most [people] have little or no experience with hurricanes and tropical storms,” he said.
Residents should be prepared with water, food and necessary medications to survive the first 72 hours of a major storm, officials said.
Another often overlooked step is having flood insurance, said John Droneburg, director of the Maryland Emergency Management Agency.
“One of the biggest disappointments is for people to think the federal government will replace your home,” he said.
To Johnson, it?s important to have a weather radio. They?re cheap, he said, running about $30 at an electronics store. These radios will alert residents of severe weather 24 hours a day, he said.
“If you?re asleep, you can still get killed,” he said.
Emergency kit items
» One gallon of water per person for at least three days
» nonperishable food
» one change of clothing and footwear for each person
» first-aid kit
» one blanket or sleeping bag per person
» battery-powered weather radio
» flashlight with extra batteries
» cash and credit card
» special items for infant, elderly and disabled family members, such as medications and diapers
Source: Federal Emergency Management Agency
What?s in a name?
For more than 50 years, weather officials have named major tropical storms and hurricanes in the Atlantic, christening them Albertos, Igors and Berthas.
“It was a way to identify the storms, and it?s a common communication between other countries and other government agencies,” National Weather Service spokesman Dennis Feltgen said.
To be named, storms must be a closed area of low pressure and have tropical characteristics and winds of at least 39 mph, he said.
The National Weather Service has named Atlantic tropical storms since 1953, for many years choosing only female names that were short and easy to remember, Feltgen said. With the civil rights movement, weather officials moved to alternating between male and femalenames. There is a six-year rotating alphabetic list, excluding Q, U, X, Y and Z.
In 2005, there were more hurricanes than names, and the Greek alphabet identified the extra storms.
The storm?s name is retired if the storm is powerful enough to forever evoke an emotional response.
“The name Katrina will never be used again,” Feltgen said. “Can you imagine if we didn?t retire Katrina, and lo and behold, along came another Katrina?”
The names for 2007: Andrea, Barry, Chantal, Dean, Erin, Felix, Gabrielle, Humberto, Ingrid, Jerry, Karen, Lorenzo, Melissa, Noel, Olga, Pablo, Rebekah, Sebastien, Tanya, Van and Wendy. ? Sara Michael
