VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – Although a hurricane can potentially hit at any time of the year, June 1st is the start of the official Atlantic hurricane season.
From now until the end of November is when we typically see the most hurricanes in Hampton Roads, which means now is that final time to get prepared before it’s too late.
We’ve already had two named storms before the season even began, but does that mean this hurricane season will be rough?
Meteorologist Myles Henderson says that’s no indicator of how this year will be.
“That’s been a lot of chatter. Just because we’ve had two before the season starts, that doesn’t necessarily mean were going to have a more active season.”
He says hurricane season is a range of months where most of our tropical activity happens.
“I always tell people its not a true start and stop time, its just sort of an average where most of our tropical systems happen.”
Myles says most of our severe weather tends to happen toward the later half of the season, but it could come at any time.
It’s important to have a hurricane kit and an evacuation plan ready now and for the next few months.
“Now is the time to prepare. Either make a hurricane kit if you’ve never made one before or it’s the time to check the one you’ve already made,” says Henderson. “A lot of people make them and then they put them in a closet and they forget about them.”
He says its always a good idea to double check them because things like batteries and food have expiration dates.
Other things you need in your hurricane kit are blankets, food, water, medical supplies, a flashlight, a manual can opener and supplies for your pets.
It’s also important to know whether your home is in a flood zone.
“They always say the rains a serious thing, the winds a serious thing, but especially around here the storm surge is what causes the most problems,” says Myles. “So whether its coming from the ocean or its water rising from the tributaries, that storm surge that’s what causes most of our damage around here.”
If there is a hurricane on the way and an evacuation is ordered, the city surge zones are the first notified.
You can get those notifications as well as any road closures or evacuation routes and the latest weather updates sent right to your phone by downloading our News 3 app.
