WUFT News News and Public Media for North Central Florida from the University of Florida in Gainesville
At least a dozen named storms could be in the offing for the 2013 hurricane season.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recently made that prediction for the period beginning Saturday and stretching through November 30.
“NOAA predicts an above normal and possibly extremely active hurricane season,” said Kathryn Sullivan, NOAA’s acting director.
Officials are reminding Floridians to remain vigilant when storms approach, even for those living inland.
Locally, Gainesville resident Johnny Yunes isn’t all that worried about preparing.
“I live in an apartment complex, so there’s not much preparation I can do,” said Yunes, who survived Hurricane Andrew as a child in 1992.
Should a dangerous storm come at either side of the state, flashlights, batteries, a radio, canned food, and a generator are all recommended supplies to have on hand, said Roman Otmahov of Zell’s Hardware in Gainesville.
In 2012, Hurricane Sandy drew the most attention further up the Atlantic Coast, but Floridians witnessed their own share of deaths and flooding because of tropical storms Beryl and Debbie.
Craig Fugate is the Federal Emergency Management Administration director and has roots in Alachua County. He spoke at length with WUFT News on Friday about what to expect and when to prepare this season.
