Tropical storm expert, William Gray, PhD, predicts the Atlantic basin will see twice as many hurricanes in 2003 as it did in the previous year.
On the basis of current and projected global climate signals, Dr. Gray and his forecast team at Colorado State University are predicting 12 tropical storms severe enough to be named will form in the Atlantic basin between June 1 and Nov. 30. Of these storms, the forecasters predict eight will become hurricanes and three will evolve into intense hurricanes with winds of 111 miles per hour or greater.
"The probability of a major hurricane making U.S. landfall in 2003 is 30 percent higher than in the average season," Dr. Gray said.
For more information on these forecasts, visit http://hurricane.atmos.colostate.edu/forecasts/.
The AVMA urges all veterinarians to prepare their practices and clients for the possibility of hurricanes and other natural disasters. To aid these efforts, the AVMA has prepared a series of disaster preparedness materials, which can be viewed at www.avma.org/disaster/default.asp.