Our hurricane season runs from June 1st to November 30, bringing an average of 10 tropical storms, with six strengthening into hurricanes.
Most hurricanes begin as a cluster of thunderstorms.
When the wind speeds reach 39 mph, a tropical storm is named, which can become a hurricane if the winds reach a constant speed of 74 mph. In a hurricane, winds move counterclockwise around a center of extremely low pressure. It is the wind and low pressure that create the storm surge - a wall of water pushed by the storm and responsible for 9 out of 10 hurricane deaths. During Hurricane Camille, which hit the Mississippi Coast in 1969, the storm surge reached 25 feet above sea level. Categories - Hurricane have been classified into 5 categories to better communicate their destructive force and compare storm strength.