It is now hurricane season, and Gulf Coast residents are keeping their fingers crossed the forecasters' predictions hold true.
Government weather forecasters at NOAA predict eight to 14 named storms. Eight would be incredibly low. LSU Health New Orleans climatologist Barry Keim says that 14 would be average.
Forecasters think El Niño conditions will begin this summer and disrupt tropical weather.
"It's expected that as we get deeper into hurricane season, this El Niño will form, it will continue to intensify as we get deeper into the season," Keim said.
But there are some factors working against us -- Keim says we have warmer sea surface temperatures, and weaker trade winds.
"When those trade winds are weaker than normal, that's less wind over the tropical ocean, and that just means more heat can build up inside the ocean, and that can feed those hurricanes," he explained.
And even a slow season can produce a monster. 1992, for example, didn't produce its first named storm until almost Labor Day.
"But it happened to be Hurricane Andrew," said Keim. "It was a killer hurricane" striking south Florida, and then the central coast of Louisiana.
