June 1 to November 30 is Hurricane Season in my part of the world. This will be our 37th Hurricane season in South Florida. We’ve had to lower the awnings quite a few times over the years. The most devastating hurricanes we’ve been through were Hurricane Andrew in August 1992 and Hurricane Wilma, the end of October 2005.
The worst year for the whole state of Florida was 2004 when 4 hurricanes criss-crossed the state. That was also the year that my younger sister and her husband moved to the west coast of Florida! What a welcome that was. During Hurricane Charley, they hunkered down with martinis and popcorn in a big closet in their bathroom!
In 2005, there were 28 named storms: 15 of which were hurricanes. They had predicted 14 named storms (9 hurricanes)! I guess “they” didn’t see it coming …
The above pic is taken after Wilma visited our neighborhood in 2005. Our beautiful Pon Gam tree in the front yard has been uprooted and stripped of half its leaves. Lamppost had been blown over and is laying on its side. Leaves from a tree on side of the house litter the sidewalk. With the help of neighbors, the Pon Gam was pushed back into place. It is a still a good tree, but is not the same and I don’t expect it ever will be.
This year they are predicting 14 – 23 storms, which includes 8 – 14 hurricanes. Unless you have one of them Time Machines and go take a trip to the future and come back again, I really don’t think you can be an accurate predictor of hurricanes.
I hope the number of storms falls short of this year’s predictions. I have a feeling that we will be preparing for some storms in Florida. All we can do is be prepared. Keep a watch on the weather. And always respect Mother Nature.
