Five Hurricane Names to Be Retired

[phantom power]

April 06,2006 | WASHINGTON -- Never will Katrina be so little missed. Nor Dennis, Rita, Stan and Wilma -- four other hurricane names from last year's devastating storms that have now been officially retired.

The retired names will be replaced by Don, Katia, Rina, Sean and Whitney.

Some 67 names have been retired since storms were first named in 1953. The first to be dropped, in 1954, were Carol and Hazel. Last year's five is the most retired in a single year.

This year's hurricane names will be: Alberto, Beryl, Chris, Debby, Ernesto, Florence, Gordon, Helene, Isaac, Joyce, Kirk, Leslie, Michael, Nadine, Oscar, Patty, Rafael, Sandy, Tony, Valerie, William.

If that number of names suffices.

http://www.salon.com/wire/ap/archive.html?wire=D8GQKK385.html

[XNASA]

1. Whitney? Isn't that piling on? nt

[RaleighNCDUer]

15. Why Whitney? nt

[Eugene]

2. The 2005 season breaks yet another record. n/t

[phantom power]

6. 7.5% of the retired names, 1.9% of the named hurricane seasons.

[tanyev]

3. They'll probably get screwed out of their pension, too.

[jobycom]

5. (chuckle)

[jobycom]

4. Five inductees to the Hurricane Hall of Fame, so to speak.

Odd that Corrina didn't make the list.

[NYC]

10. That showed the depth of her involvement,

or even interest.

[BOSSHOG]

7. As a gulf coast resident let me offer a wish

that we don't get past Beryl. Two named storms will be more than enough excitement for one season.

[displacedtexan]

8. What About (Hurricane) Bob?

Sorry, I just had to ask that.

http://www.geocities.com/hurricanene/hurricanebob.htm

[soothsayer]

9. Who on earth picked Katia? Are these Russian hurricanes?

[Der Blaue Engel]

12. Or Sean?

And what on earth is "Rina"??

Weird.

[XemaSab]

16. I knowit

"Let's just change one letter from the retired names and see if people notice."

[dcfirefighter]

21. The Irish Hurricane n/t

[NNadir]

11. I am very disappointed that the Hurricane people didn't consult DU

as I solicited new names on their behalf, thinking they're going to need them.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=4298639

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=4357280

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=4371261

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=4179858

I guess all of the hardwork, and all of the posting of gratuitous pictures of women by the DU community went for naught. It's not our fault if they run out of names again.

[Der Blaue Engel]

13. Why do we name hurricanes?

It's always seemed pretty weird to me. We don't name tornadoes or fires or earthquakes. It's a nautical thing, I suppose, but why?

[XemaSab]

17. Earthquakes and fires have names

Loma Prieta and the Tunnel Fire are the "official" names of the 1989 quake in San Francisco and the 1991 Oakland Hills fire.

They just don't get people names.

[Der Blaue Engel]

20. That's what I meant: people names n/t

[RaleighNCDUer]

19. Because they are big, devastating, and long lasting meaning they

can be tracked.

Earthquakes, of major magnitude, are named for their epicenter or areas of greatest effect, i.e., San Franciso earthquake, Northridge earthquake.

Tornadoes are only notable if extremely damaging or lethal because they are so common. They are basically ephemeral. Few actually last for more than minutes.

It's a matter of referencing them. Being named, hurricanes are more easily remembered by non-experts. (Of course, if you have survived a bad one, it's not something you're going to forget - it's for everyone else.)

[NV Whino]

14. Can we move Valerie

to the top of the list?

:rofl:

[XemaSab]

18. "A small, localized, intense hurricane that only hit 16 square blocks

of DC."

[dcfirefighter]

22. How 'bout Hurricane Carter

As in 'Rubin Carter' subject of Bob Dylan's 'Hurricane' (of which Phish does an excellent cover)