Hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30 each year. September is the highest probability month of the season. There is an average of 10 named storms per season according to the National Hurricane Center. A storm gets named as it reaches tropical storm status. Residents and visitors to the area should learn the elevation of where they are in relation to sea level and the storm surge history of the area.
Storm surge is a dome-like rise in the ocean level associated with the hurricane.
Hurricanes have circling bands consisting of severe winds, heavy rain and lightning rotating in a counterclockwise direction around a relatively calm center of extremely low atmospheric pressure known as the Hurricane's Eye. They begin off the coast of Africa and move westerly towards the Caribbean and Eastern United States. Beginning as low pressure tropical disturbances, common phenomenons in the tropics, these depressed areas suck water and air into themselves from this surrounding high pressure area. They build up strength over warm waters but may lose some of their energy once they cross over land. Meteorologists classify hurricanes by categories of 1-5 using a scale that measures the wind and speed of the storm called a Beaufort Scale.