Hurricane season is upon us, and forecasters are predicting an active year. Weather reports before you were glued to the TV, here are some things to know about hurricanes, named storms and how all the major storms can affect your insurance coverage.
How hurricanes form
storm goes through several stages before it becomes a hurricane. They include:
- Tropical cyclones occurs when a group of thunderstorms meet on an ocean. These storms usually come on the tropical water, have a small amount of rotation in the center and winds at or below 39 miles per hour.
- Tropical storms have the fastest winds (somewhere between 39 and 73 miles per hour) and a cyclonic shape and heavy storms. Tropical Storms can be less powerful than hurricanes, but they can still cause an incredible amount of damage if they reach land.
- Hurricanes are among the most powerful storms and devastating on the ground. They are divided into five categories, with hurricane winds category from 74 miles per hour and Category Five hurricane winds reaching 157 miles huge or more per hour.
A storm is called a hurricane when it forms over the Atlantic and eastern Pacific Ocean center; a cyclone when it forms on the South Pacific and the Indian Ocean; and a typhoon when it forms on the western Pacific Ocean.
Why hurricanes are named
Names are given to tropical storms and hurricanes to give people a quick reference point and to reduce confusion.
"Unlike other storms, hurricanes can be around for weeks," said Dennis Feltgen, a public affairs specialist and meteorologist for the National Hurricane Center. "We have also been cases where up to five named storms formed simultaneously. For these reasons, we call hurricanes and not other types of storms. "
Some early naming conventions included naming hurricanes after the day of the saint to which they have fallen and the phonetic alphabet. It was not until 1953 that the National Weather Service (NWS) began naming after hurricanes simple, easy to remember the names of women. (the names of the men were then added in 1978).
Today, the NWS maintains six lists of names that rotate every six years. the only exceptions are the 77 names of the most damaging hurricanes to the World Meteorological Organization retired out of respect for the victims and survivors
last year, the Weather Channel (TWC). - a cable television network and private satellite that is completely separated from the NWS announced that it would start naming winter storms. When asked why, they cited many of the same reasons to name hurricanes, namely, easier and more effective way to raise awareness and provide updates on the storm.
The decision was eventually generate a significant reaction. Critics have accused TWC sensationalism weather and override the authority of the NWS. They also criticized the TWC unusual list of names of storms that included Q, Ukko and Xerxes. (The NWS does not recognize these names.)
Today, a Facebook page opposing the decision has more than 1,000 followers.
drama Franchise named storms around
Another reason people are opposed to naming winter storms had to do with the name hurricane deductible clauses in insurance policies. These clauses stipulate that the insurer may require a higher deductible than normal when a weather event becomes a named storm.
While this fear has proved unfounded in relation to winter storms, it always applies to the hurricane and wind damage coverage. Many clauses named-storm deductible work requiring a franchise that is a percentage of a value of a home to 10 percent instead of a fixed amount. This means that rather than pay a deductible of $ 500 or $ 1,000, a house that is assured to the US average of $ 161,100 would pay $ 16.100 if their franchise named storm was 10 percent.
Fortunately for most customers in the path of Superstorm Sandy, the National Hurricane Center said Sandy a post-tropical storm just before it made landfall. This meant the named storm deductible could not be triggered, saving many policyholders big bucks.
With ERIE, you do not have to worry about a named storm deductible.
0 Komentar