All those names are names which were given to Atlantic hurricanes that were subsequently ‘retired’ due having caused significant damage, destruction or impact on people’s lives or their livelihoods. From Carol in 1954, when the ‘retirement’ system started to Otto in 2016.
My esteemed colleague and meteorologist, Chris Bell, posed a bonus question about what was unique about ‘Allison’ (2001). My guess is that it was the only storm in the list which did not become meterologically strong enough to be a hurricane (it remained a tropical storm), but caused enough destruction on the mainland USA to have it’s name retired. (Am I right, Chris? Erika in 2015 also only got to a tropical storm but never hit the USA).
Of course with this bit of fun I am referring to the current three active hurricanes in the Atlantic, Hurricanes Katia, Irma and Jose. It is almost certain that Irma will have its name retired and without a doubt so will Harvey that recently hit Houston, Texas.
Hurricane Harvey. Image credit: Daily Mail
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Published by Kit Marie Rackley (they/she)
Kit Marie Rackley (they/she) is an award-winning educator, author and climate education specialist, and a former secondary Geography and Drama teacher. As Schools Climate Hub Coordinator at the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research (University of East Anglia), Kit Marie supports schools to develop meaningful, evidence-informed responses to climate change.
Their work spans teacher professional development, school leadership, geography education and climate science communication. Kit Marie has worked with organisations including the Geographical Association, NOAA in Boulder Colorado and the Exploratorium in San Francisco, and has written for National Geographic Kids, Diverse Educators and What is Geography Teaching, Now?
Kit Marie’s work explores the climate crisis as a curriculum, leadership and safeguarding issue, alongside a wider commitment to youth voice, decolonising the curriculum, and inclusive and intersectional education. They write at Geogramblings.com and host and produce the Coffee & Geography podcast.
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