Strong Hurricane Season Could Hit NC After Coronavirus Peak

NORTH CAROLINA — North Carolina and the rest of the East Coast could be headed into a busy hurricane season just after the novel coronavirus outbreak peaks, forecasters say.

The 2020 hurricane season could bring 16 named storms — four more than the average — up the Atlantic Coast this summer, according to Colorado State University meteorologists. An average season has 12 named storms, six hurricanes, and three major hurricanes.

"The team predicts that 2020 hurricane activity will be about 140 percent of the average season," meteorologists wrote on Thursday. "By comparison, 2019's hurricane activity was about 120 percent of the average season."

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Half of the 16 storms will become hurricanes and four could reach gusts of 111 miles per hour, the meteorologists said.

There is an almost 70 percent chance a major hurricane land somewhere on the U.S. coastline during the 2020 season which begins in June, the CSU team warned in its first outlook of the hurricane season.

The 2020 COVID-19 projections show the pandemic will peak near the end of April and continue into July, officials said Wednesday.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper issued a stay-at-home order that went into effect Monday for residents to help contain the coronavirus outbreak. The order lasts until April 29, unless changed or rescinded by another executive order.

The 2019 hurricane season produced 18 named storms, including six hurricanes of which three were "major" (Category 3, 4 or 5), according to NOAA. The agency's outlook called for 10-17 named storms, 5-9 hurricanes and 2-4 major hurricanes, and accurately predicted the overall activity of the season.

The three major hurricanes last season were Dorian, Humberto and Lorenzo. Hurricane Dorian is tied with three other hurricanes — the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane, 1988's Hurricane Gilbert and 2005's Hurricane Wilma — as the second strongest hurricane on record in the Atlantic in terms of wind (185 mph). In all, four storms made landfall in the U.S. during the 2019 season: Barry, Dorian, Imelda and Nestor.

"Coastal residents are reminded that it only takes one hurricane making landfall to make it an active season for them, and they need to prepare the same for every season, regardless of how much activity is predicted," CSU warned.

Deb Belt, Patch editor, contributed

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