Study suggests new Category 6 is needed to measure hurricanes

HAVE TO BE ABLE TO LEARN FROM IT. ALL OF OUR COMMUNITIES. YEAH. A NEW STUDY CLAIMS THE CURRENT WAY WE MEASURE HURRICANES IS, QUOTE, INADEQUATE AND NEEDS TO CHANGE. FIRST WARNING METEOROLOGIST ERIC BURRIS IS HERE TO BREAK DOWN THOSE CLAIMS AND ERIC ARE WE GOING TO NEED TO LEARN ABOUT A NEW CATEGORY FOR STORMS? I WOULDN’T SAY JUST YET. AND AS A MATTER OF FACT, THE REALITY HERE IS THAT FOR YEARS, THE WAY THAT WE MEASURE HURRICANES HAS BEEN QUESTION AND QUESTIONING IS HEALTHY FOR SCIENCE. THIS IS THE SAPPHIRE SIMPSON SCALE. IT RUNS FROM CATEGORY ONE TO CATEGORY FIVE. WE ALL KNOW THAT. BUT NOTICE THAT CATEGORY FIVE IS OPEN ENDED WITH ANYTHING SHOWING WINDS OVER 157MPH. THERE’S A STUDY OUT THIS WEEK THAT ESSENTIALLY. SAYS THAT FAILS TO TELL THE FULL STORY OF HIGHER WIND SPEEDS, AND THAT IT IS, QUOTE, INCREASINGLY PROBLEMATIC IN A WARMING WORLD. END QUOTE. THEIR PROPOSAL CALLS FOR ANYTHING WITH WINDS OVER 192 MILES AN HOUR TO BE A CAT SIX IN HISTORY. BY THE WAY, ONLY FIVE SYSTEMS WOULD EVER QUALIFY. HIGH FOR THIS, NONE OF WHICH IN THE ATLANTIC BASIN. NOW, THOSE CLIMATE SCIENTISTS IDEA IS THAT BY SHOWING A HIGHER CATEGORY, IF STORMS GET THERE, FOLKS WOULD BE ADEQUATELY WARMED, WARNED FOR HIGHER WIND SPEEDS. BUT HERE’S THE THING THE DESCRIPTION OF CATEGORY FOUR AND FIVE STORMS ALREADY DISCUSS THAT CATASTROPHIC DAMAGE. SO OFFICIALS DOWN AT THE NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER STEER CLEAR OF THIS BEING A NEEDED CHANGE, STATING THAT WE NEED TO FOCUS MORE ON INDIVIDUAL THREATS. AND I CAN TELL YOU AS A METEOROLOGIST, HAVING COVERED HURRICANES FOR DECADES HERE IN FLORIDA, UNDERSTANDING THOSE INDIVIDUAL IMPACTS TO ME IS THE BIGGEST POINT TO TRY TO EXPLAIN. WHEN STORMS THREATEN CAT TROPIC WINDS AT CAT FOUR, CAT FIVE, OR A POTENTIAL CAT SIX WOULD STILL BE CATASTROPHIC. BUT HOW WILL IT IMPACT YOUR FAMILY? AND IT’S THAT IMPORTANT POINT IN MITIGATING RISK AND MAKING DECISIONS FOR YOUR FAMILY. SO CAM AT THIS POINT, THE HURRICANE CENTER IS VERY CLEAR ON THEIR VERBIAGE. WE NEED TO FOCUS ON IMPACT, NOT ON SCALES AND NUMBERS. THAT’S RIGHT. AND THAT’S SOMETHING WE FOCUS ON WHENEVER WE ARE THREATENED BY ANY TROPICAL SYSTEM. THE SAFFIR-SIMPSON HURRICANE SCALE HAS BEEN IN PLACE FOR 50 YEARS, AND ALTHOUGH YES, IT IS BASED ON WINDS, WE TRY TO TALK ABOUT THE DAMAGE THAT THESE POTENTIAL SYSTEMS CAN CAUSE. SOMETHING WE EMPHASIZE A LOT HERE IN THE WEATHER DEPARTMENT. THIS HAS BEEN A TALKER FOR FOR A WHILE. THIS IS NOT JUST THE FIRST TIME THIS HAS BEEN BROUGHT UP. CERTAINLY YEARS TO COME. THIS DISCUSSION WILL CONTINUE TO COME UP KIND OF LIKE DO WE NEED TO MODIFY THE CONE? SO WE’LL CONTINUE TO WORK THROUGH THIS. BUT THAT’S HEALTHY FOR SCIENCE. THAT’S RIGHT. THAT’S A HYPOTHESIS. AND THEN WE GO THROUGH THE SEE IF IT WORKS. BUT EITHER WAY YOU CAN TRUST THAT WE DON’T TRY TO JUST FOCUS ON T