Hurricane names

Hurricane/Storm names:

The National Hurricane Center gives the storm a name from the list once a tropical storm reaches wind speeds of 39 mph and develops a counter-clockwise circulation.

The letters Q, U, X, Y and Z are omitted from the list because so few names begin with those letters. Names associated with storms that have caused significant death and/or damage are usually retired.

For hundreds of years, hurricanes in the West Indies were named after the particular saint's day on which the hurricane occurred. An Australian meteorologist began giving women's names to tropical storms before the end of the 19th century. In 1953, the U.S. National Weather Service, which is the federal agency that tracks hurricanes and issues warnings and watches, began using female names for storms.

In 1979, both women and men's names were used. One name for each letter of the alphabet is selected. For Atlantic Ocean hurricanes, the names may be French, Spanish or English, since these are the major languages bordering the Atlantic Ocean where the storm occur.

So who decides what names are used each year? The World Meteorological Organization uses six lists in rotation. The same lists are reused every six years. The only time a new name is added is if a hurricane is very deadly or costly. Then the name is retired and a new name is chosen.

2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
Arlene Bret Cindy Dennis Emily Franklin Gert Harvey Irene Jose Katrina Lee Maria Nate Ophelia Philippe Rita Stan Tammy Vince Wilma Alpha Beta Gamma Delta Epsilon Zeta	Alberto Beryl Chris Debby Ernesto Florence Gordon Helene Isaac Joyce Kirk Leslie Michael Nadine Oscar Patty Rafael Sandy Tony Valerie William	Andrea Barry Chantal Dean Erin Felix Gabrielle Humberto Ingrid Jerry Karen Lorenzo Melissa Noel Olga Pablo Rebekah Sebastien Tanya Van Wendy	Arthur Bertha Cristobal Dolly Edouard Fay Gustav Hanna Ike Josephine Kyle Laura Marco Nana Omar Paloma Rene Sally Teddy Vicky Wilfred	Ana Bill Claudette Danny Erika Fred Grace Henri Ida Joaquin Kate Larry Mindy Nicholas Odette Peter Rose Sam Teresa Victor Wanda	Alex Bonnie Colin Danielle Earl Fiona Gaston Hermine Igor Julia Karl Lisa Matthew Nicole Otto Paula Richard Shary Tomas Virginie Walter

In 2005, the official list of names for storms wasn't long enough to cover all the hurricanes that developed that year. When the standard list of storm names ran out, forecasters used the letters of the Greek alphabet to name the five additional storms.

Atlantic storms retired into hurricane history:

Dennis (2005): Cuba, Florida
Emily (2005): Grenada, Mexico
Katrina (2005)
Rita (2005)
Stan (2005)
Wilma (2005)
Jeanne (2004): Florida
Ivan (2004): Grenada, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Alabama, Florida
Frances (2004): Florida
Charley (2004): Cuba, Florida
Juan (2003): Nova Scotia
Isabel (2003): North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland
Fabian (2003): Bermuda
Lili (2002): Cuba, Louisiana
Isidore (2002): Cuba, Mexico, Louisiana
Michelle (2001): Cuba, Bahamas
Iris (2001): Belize
Allison (2001): Texas
Keith (2000): Belize, Mexico
Lenny (1999): Virgin Islands, St. Maartin/St. Martin, Anguilla
Floyd (1999): North Carolina
Mitch (1998): Central America, Nicaragua, Honduras
Georges (1998): Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico, Hispanolia, Cuba, Mississippi
Hortense (1996): Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic
Fran (1996): North Carolina
Cesar (1996): Nicaragua
Roxanne (1995): Mexico
Opal (1995): Florida
Marilyn (1995): Virgin Islands, Leeward Islands
Luis (1995): Leeward Islands
Andrew (1992): Bahamas, South Florida, Louisiana
Bob (1991): North Carolina, Northeast U.S.
Klaus (1990): Martinique
Diana (1990): Mexico
Hugo (1989): Antilles, South Carolina
Joan (1988): Curacao, Venezuela, Colombia, Nicaragua (Crossed into the Pacifi$
Gilbert (1988): Lesser Antilles, Jamaica, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico
Gloria (1985): North Carolina, Northeast U.S.
Elena (1985): Mississippi, Alabama, Western Florida
Alicia (1983): North Texas
Allen (1980): Antilles, Mexico, South Texas
Frederic (1979): Alabama and Mississippi
David (1979): Lesser Antilles, Hispañola, Florida and Eastern U.S.
Anita (1977): Mexico
Eloise (1975): Antilles, Northwest Florida, Alabama
Fifi (1974): Honduras, Guatemala
Carmen (1974): Mexico, Louisiana
Agnes (1972): Florida, Northeast U.S.
Celia (1970): South Texas
Camille (1969): Mississipi
Beulah (1967): Antilles, Mexico, South Texas
Inez (1966): Lesser Antilles, Hispanola, Cuba, Florida Keys, Mexico
Betsy (1965): Bahamas, Southeast Florida, Southeast Louisiana
Dora (1964): Northeast Florida
Cleo (1964): Lesser Antilles, Haiti, Cuba, Southeast Florida
Hilda (1964): Louisiana
Flora (1963): Haiti, Cuba
Hattie (1961): Belize, Guatemala
Carla (1961): Texas
Donna (1960): Bahamas, Florida and Eastern U.S.
Gracie (1959): Bahamas, South Carolina
Audrey (1957): Louisiana, North Texas
Janet (1955): Lesser Antilles, Belize, Mexico
Ione (1955): North Carolina
Diane (1955): Mid-Atlantic U.S., Northeast U.S.
Connie (1955): North Carolina
Hazel (1954): Antilles, North and South Carolina
Edna (1954): Massachusetts
Carol (1954): Northeast U.S.