Preparing 4 The Storm: WYFF News 4 Hurricane Special 2021

>> NOW A WYFF NEWS 4 WEATHER SPECIAL. PREPARING FOR THE STOR >> HURRICANES ARE A UNIQUE FORCE. >> AFTER ONE RECORD HURRICANE SEASON - >> LAST YEAR WE HAD OVER 30 STORMS. >> THE WYFF NEWS 4 WEATHER TEAM IS PREPARING YOU FOR WHATEVER THIS SEASON MAY BRING, FROM WINDS TO TORRENTIAL RAINS ACROSS THE UPSTATE AND WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA. >> WE BELIEVE IT WILL BE AN ACTIVE STORM SEASON. >> OUR TEAM IS TRACKING IT ALL TONIGHT ON PREPARING FOR THE STORM. CHRIS: GOOD EVENING. I’M CHRIS JUSTUS. TONIGHT THE WYFF NEWS 4 WEATHER TEAM IS HELPING YOU PREPARE FOR THE STORM, HURRICANE SEASON OFFICIALLY STARTS IN FIVE DAYS ON JUNE 1. BUT THINGS ARE ALREADY FIRING UP. YOU ARE LOOKING LIVE AT THE SATELLITE OVER THE ATLANTI RIGHT NOW, ALL IS, WHICH IS GOOD NEWS FOR THE SEVENTH YEAR IN A ROW HURRICANE SEASON STARTED EARLY IN MAY. JUST ONE WEEK AGO, TROPICAL STORM ANA FORMED WITH WINDS UP TO 45 MPH NEAR BERMUDA. THANKFULLY THAT SYSTEM HAS SINCE FIZZLED OUT IN THE ATLANTIC OCEAN. AND THEN NEXT 30 MINUTES OR SO WERE GOING TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE GO, THINGS ARE LOOKING NICE. -- GULF. IN THE NEXT 30 MINUTES, WE’RE GOING TO COVER WHAT THIS HURRICANE SEASON HAS IN STORE - AND WHAT YOU NEED TO DO TO ENSURE YOU ARE WEATHER AWARE AND PREPARED FOR WHATEVER MAY COME OUR WAY. WHETHER IT BE HEAVY WINDS RAINS OR FLOODING, THE WYFF NEWS 4 WEATHER TEAM HAS YOU COVERED IN EVERY SEASON. TO KNOW WHAT IS HEADED OUR WAY THIS YEAR, WE HAVE TO LOOK AT THE NORMAL HURRICANE SEASON ALONG WITH THE NEW NORMAL THAT WAS JUST CHANGED THIS YEAR, WALK TO KEY -- CHANGE THIS YEAR. THE NEW NORMAL COMPARED TO THE OLD NORMAL DUE TO THE INCREASED ACTIVITY THE NEW 20 YEAR AVERAGE IS HIGHER, MUCH HIGHER. THAT AVERAGE OF WHAT IS NORMAL HAS INCREASED, NAMED STORMS 14, HURRICANES SEVEN WITH THREE MAJOR HURRICANES BEING WHAT WE WOULD CONSIDER NORMAL. WE’VE GOT A CLOSE EYE ON THE 2021 HURRICANE SEASON ESPECIALLY AFTER 2020 SET RECORDS IN THE TROPICS. THERE WERE A RECORD-BREAKING 30 NAMED STORMS WITH 12 OF THEM MAKING LANDFALL IN THE UNITED STATES. 13 OF THOSE THIRTY STORMS BECAME HURRICANES WITH WINDS OF 74 MILES PER HOUR OR GREATER. SEVEN OF THEM WHERE MAJOR HURRICANES TOPPING OUT AT 111 MILES PER HOUR OR MORE. THESE STORMS BROKE THE PREVIOUS RECORD WITH 28 NAMED STORMS IN 2005. LET’S LOOK CLOSER MONTH BY MONTH AT WHEN HURRICANE SEASON RAMPS UP. AS YOU CAN SEE THE MAJORITY OF HURRICANE SEASON’S ACTIVITY OCCURS BETWEEN AUGUST AND OCTOBER. WITH THE PEAK OF HURRICANE SEASON BEING AROUND SEPTEMBER 10. LET’S LOOK CLOSER AT WHERE THEY START TO GIVE US TROUBLE SPOTS. IN JUNE IS WHEN WE SEE ACTIVITY STARTING TO BUBBLE UP CLOSE TO HOME, YOU GET BOUNDARIES TO THE SOUTH AND BECAUSE AT THAT TIME OF YEAR THEY DON’T MAKE IT SOUTH, WE GET ACTIVITY IN THE GULF AND RIGHT ACROSS THE STATE OF FLORIDA. AS WE GET INTO JULY, THINGS GET MORE ACTIVE FURTHER AWAY FROM HOME, THE CARIBBEAN COMES A HOT SPOT, THINGS TRAVEL THROUGH THE GULF AND THE CARIBBEAN. AS WE GET INTO AUGUST, THINGS REALLY START TO RAMP UP. SOME ACTIVITY CAN COME INTO THE GULF AND THE CARIBBEAN, SEPTEMBER IS THE PEAK. SEPTEMBER 10. THAT IS WHEN THINGS START TO HAPPEN DEEPER INTO THE ATLANTIC AND WE HAVE THOSE LONG TRACK HURRICANES SPEND ABOUT A WEEK TRACKING AS IT TRAVELS ACROSS THE ATLANTIC, POSSIBLY TOWARD THE UNITED STATES. OCTOBER IS WHEN THINGS START TO RAMP UP IN THE CARIBBEAN. WE GET SYSTEMS THAT START TO FOLLOW BECAUSE BY THIS YEAR THINGS ARE COOLING DOWN AND WE GET THE JET STREAM TO DIP DOWN AND THAT ALLOWS US TO HAVE MORE ACTIVITY THAT CAN RIDE NORTH AND IN NOVEMBER IT IS POSSIBLE FOR ACTIVITY, THAT IS WHEN WE START TO LOOK CLOSER TO HOME FOR THE BOUNDARIES AND WE LOOK OUT FOR THAT IN THE ATLANTIC. TO TRACK HURRICANES, WE RELY ON COMPUTER MODELS. YOU OFTEN HEAR US REFER TO THE EUROPEAN OR THE AMERICAN MODELS WHICH GIVE US CRITICAL GUIDANCE ON THE STORMS. CURRENT DATA LIKE WIND SPEEDS, DIRECTION AND CLOUD HEIGHTS FEED THOSE COMPUTER MODELS BUT SOMETIMES THEY DON’T GET ENOUGH DATA AND WE END UP DEALING WITH THE BEST OF THE WORST AND CAN HAVE A TOUGH TIME NAILING DOWN AN EXACT TRACK ESPECIALLY 5-7 DAYS OUT. LET ME SHOW YOU FORMER COMPUTER MODELS WITH KATRINA. THIS WOULD HAVE A DIFFERENT IMPACT FOR US AND HOME MENTOR THE MISSISSIPPI, IT IS KEY TO FOLLOW THOSE COMPUTER MODELS AND THAT IS HOW WE RELY ON THAT. AS WE LOOK AHEAD, WE START TO LOOK TOWARD OUR OWN TEASE BLENDED IN WITH THESE COMPUTER MODELS AND THAT IS ALSO HOW THE NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER’S CONE IS MADE, HERE IS A LOOK AT THE IRMA TRACK. A TRACK CAN MEAN EVERYTHING, YOU HAVE SEEN IT TIME AND TIME AGAIN, OUR AREA CAN BE IN A COMA ONLY TO BE REMOVED IF YOU DAYS LATER OR THE OTHER WAY AROUND, OUR THREAT CAN INCREASE. THE KEY TO REMEMBER IS THAT LITTLE CHANGES TO THE CENTER OF CIRCULATION CAN HAVE BIG CHANGES TO THE IMPACT DOWN THE LINE AND THAT IS WHAT WE LOOK OUT FOR. I HAD A CHANCE TO SPEAK WITH THE KEN GRAHAM DIRECTOR OF THE NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER ABOUT THIS >> LITTLE WIGGLES DO MATTER. YOU CAN GET A CHANGE IN THAT STORM BY 20-30 MILES AND THAT COULD MAKE THE DIFFERENCE IN PUTTING YOU IN OR OUT OF HURRICANE FORCE WINDS. THAT COULD BE THE DIFFERENCE IN MORE THAN 10 FEET OF STORM SURGE. 20 MILES DIFFERENCE OF WHERE THE STORM IS CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN MORE THAN 10 FEET OF STORM SURGE, SO LITTLE WIGGLES MATTER. CAROL: --CHRIS: THIS SEASON, YES YOU WILL SEE US SHOW THE TRACK AND THE MODELS BUT OUR EMPHASIS WILL BE ON ALERTING YOU TO THE IMPACTS WITH CLEAR AND CONCISE INFORMATION THAT CAN HELP YOU KEEP YOUR FAMILY SAFE. SO CHECK BACK WITH US OFTEN AS STORMS DEVELOP TO GET THE MOST RECENT INFORMATION. AS THOSE STORMS IS FORM EACH ONE WILL GET A DIFFERENT NAME. IT’S A NAME THAT’S BEEN WAITING LIST. OUR DALE GILBERT GIVES US A PREVIEW OF THE STORMS THAT COULD COME OUR WAY. GILBERT: WELL, HI THERE, IT’S HARD TO BELIEVE THAT HURRICANE SEASON IS HERE ONCE AGAIN. AND HERE ARE THE NAMES FOR THE 2021 SEASON, BEGINNING WITH ANNA CONTINUING, ALTERNATING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN GIRL AND BOY NAMES THROUGH THE ALPHABET, YOU’LL NOTICE THERE ARE A COUPLE OF LETTERS THAT ARE NOT USED LIKE Q AND X. THINK OF THE NAMES, NOT MANY THAT GO ALONG WITH THOSE LETTERS. BUT WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A TROPICAL CYCLONE OUT IN THE ATLANTIC OR PACIFIC GETS TO THE POINT WHERE IT HAS ROTATION OF WINDS AROUND THAT CENTER, REACHING 39 MILES AN HOUR ON A CONSISTENT BASIS. WE CALL IT IN A TROPICAL STORM, AND IT EARNS A NAME AND WE’LL GO THROUGH THIS LIST OF NAMES. AND THE NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER HAS ANOTHER LIST THAT SHOULD WE SURPASSED ALL THESE NAMES DURING THIS COMING SEASON, WHICH GOES FROM JUNE 1 TO NOVEMBER 30, THEN WE’LL HIT THAT SECOND LIST. IT COULD BE AN ACTIVE SEASON ONCE AGAIN, BUT WE’LL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THIS AND BRING YOU UPDATES THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. BUT AGAIN, THE 2021 NAMES ARE IN PLAY AS WE WAIT FOR THE SEASON. CAROL: THANK YOU, DALE. AND A CHANGE THIS YEAR WITH HURRICANE NAMES. TRADITIONALLY IF THE HURRICANE SEASON RUNS OUT OF THE 21 NAMES FOR THE YEAR, THE STORMS WOULD THEN MOVE TO THE GREEK ALPHABET. ALPHA BETA ETCETERA. THIS YEAR OFFICIALS DECIDED THEY’LL DO AWAY WITH THAT CALLING THE PRACTICE CONFUSING. I WOULD SAY SO. INSTEAD IF THE SEASON REQUIRES MORE THAN 21 NAMES, THEY WILL DEFAULT TO A SECONDARY LIST OF NAMES. STARTING WITH ADRIA BRAYLEN CARIDAD AND DESHAWN. AS WE APPROACH HURRICANE SEASO THE RED CROSS OF SOUTH CAROLINA IS HOPING YOU’LL USE THIS TIME TO GET PREPARED. THEY SAY IT’S IMPORTANT TO HAVE EMERGENCY SUPPLIES AND A PLAN LAID OUT BEFORE THE STORM HITS. >> FOR HURRICANES WE RECOMMEND FAMILIES HAVE A NUMBER OF PREPARATIONS THAT THEY MAKE FOR HURRICANE SEASON, THE FIRST BEING KNOW HOW YOU’LL GET YOUR INFORMATION. SO WE RECOMMEND THE RED CROSS EMERGENCY ALERT APP THAT YOU CAN PUT IN ZIP CODE AND IT WILL ALERT YOU WHEN THERE ARE HAZARDS IN YOUR AREA. CHRIS: A HELPFUL TOOL. THEY ALSO RECOMMEND GETTING A WEATHER RADIO. AND CREATING AN EVACUATION PLAN IN CASE YOU’RE IN AN AREA THAT BECOMES UNSAFE. YOU SHOULD ALSO BUILD AN EMERGENCY KIT WITH THINGS LIKE WATER, FOOD, A FLASHLIGHT AND FIRST AID SUPPLIES. BECAUSE OF COVID-19 YOU SHOULD ALSO INCLUDE MASKS AND HAND SANITIZERS. FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT HOW TO GET READY AND STAY SAFE. HEAD TO THE RED CROSS’S WEBSITE THERE YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THAT FREE APP AND FIND MORE RESOURCES. AND JUST TODAY - THE SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT UNVEILED A NEW WEBSITE, HURRICANE.SC WITH ALL THE INFORMATION YOU MAY NEED AHEAD OF THE SEASON. IT INCLUDES WAYS TO PREPARE FIND YOUR EVACUATION ZONE AND HELPFUL RESOURCES. STILL TO COME ON PREPARING FOUR THE STORM, DECONSTRUCTING HURRICANE DAMAGE. JUST HOW STRONG IS A CATEGORY V STORM? NEXT WE’LL SHOW YOU JUST HOW MUCH WATER WOULD TAKE OVER THE BEACH IN THAT STORM - AND WHAT WOULD BE LEFT BEHIND. >> COMING UP WE’RE TAKING YOU INSIDE A WIND TUNNEL THAT TESTS THE STRENGTH OF HURRICANE WIND STRENGTH OF HURRICANE WINDS CHRIS: WELCOME BACK, WE ARE LIVE BACK IN THE WEATHER CENTER. ONE OF THE MOST DANGEROUS PARTS OF A HURRICANES IS THE WIND. AND THEY ARE POWERFUL, THE DAMAGE LEFT BEHIND IS SOME TIMES HARD TO IMAGINE. OUR PARELLA LEWIS WENT TO CLEMSON TO SEE JUST HOW DEVASTATING THOSE WINDS COULD BE. WE’RE HERE AT CLEMSON’S WIND AND ENGINEERING RESEARCH CENTER WHICH WAS BUILT JUST AFTER HURRICANE HUGO IN THE LATE 1980’S. PARELLA: BECAUSE HURRICANE HUGO’S DAMAGE WAS SO GREAT ACROSS SOUTH CAROLINA, THIS WIND TUNNEL WAS BUILT TO STUDY THE EFFECTS OF HURRICANE FORCE WINDS ON HOMES AND VARIOUS INFRASTRUCTURES. >> THIS WIND TUNNEL SPECIFICALLY AIMS TO UNDERSTAND HOW WIND AFFECTS OR INDUCES PRESSURE ON CERTAIN BUILDINGS WHETHER THAT’S A UNIQUE GEOMETRY IN A BUILDIN A DIFFERENT CONFIGURATION. PARELLA: THIS RESEARCH HAS ALREADY BEEN USED ON VARIOUS HIGH-RISE BUILDING ACROSS THE COUNTRY. AND PART OF THE STUDY INCLUDES THIS LAUNCHER THAT HURLS DEBRIS AT 50 TO 60 MPH. >> MOST COMMONLY THAT IS A TWO BY FOUR, IT HAS A LOT OF MASS COMPARED TO THAT SMALL LITTLE AREA IT’S IMPACTING. >> WE’RE FIRING IN 3, 2,1 BOOM >> WE’RE GOING TO LOOK AT WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE FIRE THAT DEBRIS AT TRADITIONAL CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS AND THE HAZARD THAT’S ASSOCIATED WITH THAT WIND BORN DEBRIS THAT IS PICKED UP IN THE WIND. >> 3, 2, 1. PARELLA: SUSTAINED WINDS THAT HIT 50- OR 60-MILES PER HOUR CAN DO A LOT OF DAMAGE IN A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME. BUT WHEN A CATEGORY ONE HURRICANE STARTS SPINNING WITH WINDS CLOSER TO 100 MPH, THAT’S WHEN SOMETHING LIKE THIS CAN HAPPEN. >> THIS IS A PIECE THAT WE TESTED WHERE WE SHOT IT AT JUST OVER 100 MPH. WE CUT IT IN HALF TO SEE EXACTLY WHAT’S GOING ON AND WE SEE THOSE LAYERS WORKING TOGETHER TO WITHSTAND MISSILE IMPACTS OF REALLY SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS, HURRICANES, OR EVEN TORNADOES. EVEN WITH LAYERS OF HARD, THICK -- >> EVEN WITH LAYERS OF HARD, THICK WOOD, THE FAST-MOVING PROJECTILE PENETRATED IT, NO PROBLEM. BUT INSIDE THE WIND TUNNEL ITSELF, IS A DIFFERENT SET OF EXPERIMENTS. >> THE WIND TUNNELS ACTUALLY HAS MANY DIFFERENT PARTS. IT STARTS WITH THE FANS WHERE WE ACTUALLY START MOVING THE AIR DOWN THE WIND TUNNEL. >> THE WIND TUNNEL CAN REACH SPEEDS OF UP TO 50 MPH BUT ON A MADE TO MODEL SCALE, IT CAN REPLICATE WINDS OVER 100 MPH AND BY THE WAY, THESE ARE SUSTAINED WINDS AND AS YOU CAN SEE, THAT IS FAR MORE INTENSE. SO WITH EACH NEW HURRICANE SEASON, THESE SCIENTISTS ARE WORKING HARD TO IMPROVE OUR CHANCES OF NOT JUST SURVIVING THE STORM, BUT THAT OUR HOMES WILL BE A TRUE SAFE PLACE AS WELL. >> THIS REALLY INFORMS WHERE WE CAN BUILD STRONGER AND WHERE WE NEED TO BUILD STRONGER. WE’RE TRYING TO MAKE SAVOR, MORE RELIABLE HOMES. PARELLA: PARELLA LEWIS, WYYF 4 NEWS. CHRIS: IF A TROPICAL STORM OR HURRICANE IS HEADED OUR WAY - YOU’LL LIKELY HEAR US DESIGNATE IMPACT OR ALERT DAYS. WHEN YOU SEE THESE YELLOW ICONS, IT MEANS IT’S AN IMPACT DAY. THAT MEANS, OUT OF THE ORDINARY WEATHER IS EXPECTED THAT DAY. THIS WILL LET YOU KNOW HE HOURS AND DAYS THAT WE EXPECT ESPECIALLY IMPACTFUL WEATHER. EXAMPLES OF AN IMPACT DAY ARE ESPECIALLY COLD OR HOT DAYS, A WASHOUT WITH RAIN, OR WINDY DAYS. THAT BRINGS US TO ALERT DAYS. ANYTIME YOU SEE THE RED ICON IT MEANS THAT STRONG AND SEVERE WEATHER IS LIKELY TO IMPACT YOUR FAMILY. THE RED ICON APPEARS WHEN DANGEROUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED. WEATHER CONDITIONS THAT WOULD PROMPT AN ALERT DAY, FLOODING, TORNADOES, AND TROPICAL STORMS AND HURRICANES. PREPARING FOR OUTAGES. KIM AMOS WAS IN THE DARK SOMETIME BUT UPSTATE POWER COMPANIES ARE PREPARING. A LOOK AT HOW NEXT. >> THE FACT THEY ARE WILLING TO HAVE PILOTS RISK THEIR LIVES TO FLY IN A HURRICANE. CHRIS: FLYING INTO A HURRICANE TO GET THE DATA TO INFORM YOU. WE LOOK AT THE DATA TO KEEP YOU INFORMED. CHRIS: WELCOME BACK. ONE OF THE MAIN WAYS WE LEARN ABOUT HURRICANES. IS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO CHOOSE TO FLY IN TO TO THE STORM. AND THAT INFORMATION ALONG WITH OTHER DATA ALL COMES TOGETHER TO FINE TUNE A FORECAST. OUR CEDRIC HAYNES TALKED TO OUR NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE - ABOUT HOW THEY PUT ALL THAT INFORMATION TOGETHER TO ISSUE THE WARNINGS THAT TELL YOU WHAT TO EXPECT. CEDRIC: WELL THE HURRICANE SEASON IS QUICKLY APPROACHING, AND YOU MAY HEAR OF US TALK ABOUT THINGS LIKE THE HURRICANE HUNTERS, THE ADVISORIES, AND THAT DATA GOES INTO VARIOUS DIFFERENT COMPUTER MODELS. NOW I KNOW YOU MAY BE WONDERING HOW THAT HELPS US HAVE BETTER FORECAST, WELL WE DECIDED TO COME DOWN HERE TO THE NWS TO -- NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TO FIND OUT EXACTLY HOW THEY TAKE THAT INFORMATION TO HELP PRODUCE THE ACCURATE FORECAST WE SEE TODAY. OUR PARTNERS WE WORK WITH THE HURRICANE HUNTERS WHO GO OUT TO GET VITAL INFO, HOW DO THEY DO THAT AND HOW DOES IT HELP OUR FORECAST DOWN THE LINE? >> THEY HAVE A PLAN ONCE A STORM GETS CLOSE TO US TO TAKE THESE PLANES & FLY THROUGH THE STORM IN A PATTERN THROUGH THE EYE AND WHEN FLYING THEY HAVE ON BOARD INSTRUMENTS TO MEASURE TEMPERATURE, WIND, HUMIDITY. OR TO GET MORE INFORMATION THEY WILL CALL -- DROP WHAT THEY CALL DROPSONDES INTO THE EYE TO ALSO MEASURE THOSE THINGS. IT SENDS SIGNAL TO SATELLITES AND IT TRANSMITS IT TO DIFFERENT CENTERS LIKE THE NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER AND OTHER PLACES THAT NEED THAT DATA AND THAT GETS PUT INTO A NUMERICAL WEATHER PRODUCTION MODEL AND THAT HELPS MAKE BETTER MODELS AND CHECK INTENSITY. CUEDRIC: SO NOW YOU KNOW, IT’S NOT JUST ONE INDIVIDUAL COMPUTER MODEL WE LOOK AT TO DEVELOP A FORECAST, WE LOOK AT A LOT OF DIFFERENT COMPUTER MODELS AND A LOT OF DIFFERENT DATA. WE PUT ALL THAT TOGETHER TO HELP MAKE A BETTER AND MORE ACCURATE FORECAST. OF COURSE WE AS WE MOVE TOWARDS HURRICANE SEASON WE WILL BE FOLLOWING THINGS CLOSELY. FOR WYFF 4, I’M CEDRIC HAYNES. CHRIS: THANK YOU, CEDRIC. CAN YOU IMAGINE FLYING INTO A HURRICANE? HOW HURRICANES FORM IMPACTS HOW STRONG THEY ARE AND WHAT DAMAGE THEY’RE CAPABLE OF CAUSING. BUT WHEN WE SAY A OR CATEGORY 4 -- BUT WHEN WE SAY A CATEGORY 3 OR CATEGORY FOR STORM IS HEADED FOR THE COAST WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? HERE’S METEOROLOGIST DALE GILBERT WITH A BREAKDOWN OF THE SAFFIR SIMPSON SCALE. DALE: A TYPICAL HURRICANE SEASON NOWADAYS HAS 14 NAMED STORMS, SEVEN HURRICANES AND THREE OF THOSE COULD BECOME MAJOR ON AVERAGE. WELL, LET’S BREAK DOWN THE DIFFERENT CATEGORIES. CATEGORY ONE HURRICANES BEGIN AT 74 MILE PER HOUR WINDS THAT CAN START TO DO DAMAGE TO POWER LINES, TREE TOPS AND EVEN TAKE A LITTLE SIGHTING OF HOMES 74 TO 95 MILE PER HOUR WINDS ARE CATEGORY ONE CATEGORY TWO STORMS NOW START TO PRODUCE A SURGE OF WATER INLAND CAUSING SOME MINOR FLOODING SHALLOW TREES COULD FALL MORE POWER OUTAGES OCCURRING WITH THOSE CATEGORY TWO STORMS. BUT THE MAJOR ONES THE CATEGORY THREE AND 4 AND 5. THOSE ARE THE ONES THAT DO THE MAJOR DAMAGE WITH A HUGE STORM SURGE CAUSING MAJOR FLOODING POWER AND WATER OUT FOR QUITE SOME TIME FALLEN TREES AND MORE HOME DAMAGE OCCURRING. CATEGORY FOUR WE CALL THAT CATASTROPHIC STORM DAMAGE BECAUSE NOW IT STARTS TO TAKE THE ROOFS OFF HOMES THERE’S MAJOR FLOODING, POWER AND WATER OUT FOR WEEKS AT A TIME. AND THAT GOES FROM 130 TO 156. ABOVE THAT CATEGORY FIVE STORMS. THEY JUST OBLITERATE HOMES, AND THIS FLOODING CONTINUES ON FOR WEEKS AND EVEN MONTHS AT A TIME. TREES AND POWER POLES ARE DOWN. CATEGORY FIVE STORMS ARE THE WORST AND THOSE ARE THE ONES WE HOPE STAY OUT TO SEA. WELL THAT’S A QUICK BREAKDOWN OF THE FIVE DIFFERENT CATEGORIES OF STORMS THAT CAN OCCUR DURING HURRICANE SEASON. CHRIS: WHEN STRONG STORMS MOVE IN NO MATTER THE CATEGORY, YOU SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF POWER OUTAGES. THIS VIDEO IS FROM LAST OCTOBER WHEN HURRICANE ZETA CAME THROUGH THE AREA BRINGING STRONG WINDS AND KNOCKING OUT POWER TO THOUSANDS. POWER COMPANIES SAY THEY LEARN FROM EVERY INSTANCE OF SEVERE WEATHER AND THEY ARE PREPARING NOW FOR ANY STORM THAT MAY CAUSE POWER OUTAGES. KEY IN UNDERSTANDING WHAT -- >> TECHNOLOGY AND EXPERIENCE ARE KEY IN UNDERSTANDING WHAT NORTHER NATURE IS GONG TO BRING YOUR WAY - BUT THAT SAID - SHE CAN CHANGE HER MIND AT THE LAST LAST MINUTE. WE’VE SEEN STORMS THAT CAN GO LEFT AND RIGHT AND MAKE A TREMENDOUS DIFFERENCE IN THE IMPACT THAT STORM HAS ON OUR CUSTOMERS. CHRIS: OFFICIALS SAY THEY ARE CONTINUALLY MAKING IMPROVEMENTS TO THE GRID TO REDUCE OUTAGES IN THE EVENT OF ISSUES AND ARE USING NEW TOOLS AND TECHNOLOGY TO DISPATCH CREWS TO FIX ISSUES QUICKLY. IF YOU DO LOSE POWER, HERE ARE SOME THINGS DUKE WANTS YOU TO KNOW. BE AWARE OF YOUR UNIQUE SITUATION WHETHER THAT BE SPECIFIC SUPPLIES YOU NEED OR A SPECIFIC PLAN EVERYONE NEEDS TO BE AWARE OF YOU CAN ALSO FIND MORE INFORMATION ABOUT POWER OUTAGE BY GOING TO DUKE-ENERGY.COM. STICK AROUND. CHRIS: WELCOME BACK. HERE’S THE LATEST FOR THE WEATHER I EXPECT TO SEE THIS HURRICANE SEASON, WITH A WEAK LA NIÑA, THERE IS NO EL NIÑO, WHICH HELPS US OUT AND HURRICANE SEASON. WE ALSO HAVE MORE OCEAN TEMPERATURES WHICH IS A PROBLEM WHICH ALLOWS FOR MORE DEVELOPMENT, STRONGER DEVELOPMENT WHEN WE DO. I’M EXPECTING AN ACTIVE SEASON TO BE LIKELY ACROSS THE ATLANTIC. THE EL NIÑO FACTOR CAN OFTEN HELP US OUT, THE ACTIVE SOUTHERN JET STREAM CAN WITH HIGH WIND SHEAR CARE APART HURRICANES, WITH US BEING IN A WEAK LA NIÑA PHASE GOING INTO THE HEART OF HURRICANE SEASON, WE WON’T HAVE THAT EXTRA HELP TO TEAR APART THOSE HURRICANES. LOOK AT THE FIRST -- FORECAST, WE ON AVERAGE BRING YOU 14 NAMED STORMS, I EXPECT 18. AN AVERAGE YEAR BRING SEVEN HURRICANES AND I EXPECT EIGHT, AND WHEN IT COMES TO MAJOR HURRICANES WITH THE WARM OPEN -- OCEAN TEMPERATURE, A TYPICAL YEAR WOULD BRING THREE AND WE ARE LIKELY LOOKING AT FOUR. THAT IS WHERE WE ARE SEEING IT NOW WITH THE HEART OF HURRICANE SEASON REVVING UP IN SEPTEMBER, WE NEED TO BE AWARE AT ANY TIME BECAUSE AS WE SAW LAST YEAR, HURRICANE SEASON CAN RAMP UP IN A HURRY. AS HURRICANE SEASON APPROACHES, BE SURE YOU HAVE THE WYFF NEWS 4 APP TO GET WEATHER ALERTS SENT STRAIGHT TO YOUR PHONE. MY FAMILY HAS IT. YOU CAN SIGN UP FOR NOTIFICATIONS WHEN POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS WEATHER MOVES IN TO YOUR AREA SPECIFICALLY. IT’S FREE IN THE APPLE APP OR GOOGLE PLAY STORES, JUST SEARCH WYFF, THANK YOU FOR JOINING US THIS EVENING FOR OUR SPECIAL PREPARING FOR THE STORM. AS ALWAYS, THE WYFF NEWS 4 WEATHER TEAM IS COMMITTED TO BRINGING YOU AND -- AND