"Weather Experts Predict Busy Storm Season"
(Source: Reuters, 3/20/06)

This year's hurricane season will be more active than normal but not
as busy as last year's, and the Northeast will be hit by a major
hurricane within five years, a private forecaster predicted Monday.

Experts at AccuWeather, based in State College, Pa., predicted this
year's hurricane season won't quite top last year's record number of
named storms and 14 hurricanes.

A normal season consists of 11 named storms, with five or six
hurricanes, said Ken Reeves, senior meteorologist and director of the
company's forecast operations. The season runs from May 15 to Nov. 30.

The National Weather Service counted 27 named storms last year.

The AccuWeather meteorologists also stressed that the Northeast is
overdue for a "powerful hurricane." Weather cycles and above-normal
ocean temperatures make it a question of when, not if, they said.

The meteorologists likened current weather cycles and ocean
temperatures to those in the 1930s, '40s and '50s, particularly the
pattern that led to a 1938 hurricane that struck Providence, R.I., and
killed 600 people.

Wind gusted to 186 mph, according to AccuWeather. Surges of 15 to 20
feet and waves of 25 to 50 feet left much of Providence 10 to 15 feet
underwater.

AccuWeather said Northeast hurricane damage could rival or surpass
that caused by Katrina, which inundated New Orleans and was the
costliest storm in U.S. history. The company plans to release a more
detailed forecast, including landfall and strength predictions, in May.

AccuWeather serves clients worldwide with forecasts, data, graphics,
consulting services and computer equipment.

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