Hugo, Florence, and Cape Verde: Why we name hurricanes
Even though Hugo was a category one hurricane by the time it hit Charlotte, it carried winds close to 100 mph with it. The winds were so strong they wiped out almost the entirety of the city's tree canopy and left 85% of Charlotte's residents without power.
Four people in the metro were killed, it took months before life for most Charlotteans went back to normal.
Duke Energy told us last fall that since Hugo, their storm response team has grown -- communication, technology and meteorology have all improved. But they face one problem: so many people are moving to Charlotte.
So while emergency responders prepare to keep up with the boom, there's more people that will need protection from storms like Hugo, which was what's called a 'Cape Verde storm.'
When we get to the months of September and October, we arrive at our most dangerous time. Not only is it prime time for hurricanes, more start forming off of the coast of Africa. These Cape Verde storms develop near those islands and travel across the entire warm ocean, strengthening with each mile they travel.
By the time they reach the U.S. mainland, they are monsters.
Hurricane Florence in September of 2018 was also known as a Cape Verde storm, and the Carolinas are still dealing with the impacts from that.
Florence is a good reminder that each storm has its own characteristics - that there is no single specific type of storm. They come in all shapes and sizes and each offer different kinds of deadly threats.
Consider this - in that year of 2018 we also had Hurricane Michael that slammed into Florida as a category five storm. Florence was a 'mere' category one when it hit Wrightsville Beach.
Who claimed more lives? Florence. Why? Michael raced through the south. Florence moved through our region at an astonishingly slow two miles per hour.
That's why they get a name, each storm is different: different sizes, different shapes, different speeds, and many different ways they can threaten your family and your property. And all it takes is just one. The time to be ready is now.
(VIDEO: Asheville-based businesses struggle to recover months after Hurricane Helene)
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Hamilton Spectator
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Canadian aid agencies call for action saying starvation is rampant in Gaza
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Yahoo
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