REUTERS/Scott Malone
Blame the weatherman?
At one point Hurricane Earl was a Category 4 storm with 140+ mph winds. For the northeastern seaboard that doesn’t see too many of these sometimes deadly storm systems it was scary stuff. Labor day getaways were cancelled. Homes and businesses were boarded up. Train service was cancelled. And rightfully so, because after all, Katrina taught us you can never be too careful — especially in a city like New York where it would be nearly impossible to evacuate the entire population in any sort of sane manner.
But now it seems that Earl may pass without incident. Last night North Carolina sustained only minimal damages. Today, Earl was downgraded to a category 1 with winds of 85 mph. It may even be further downgraded to a tropical storm before it reaches New England this evening. While there is still a hurricane warning in effect for Cape Cod, most other locations have been downgraded to a tropical storm watch. And, the tropical storm warning in NYC has been called off all together. (See the top 10 Reporters vs. Mother Nature.)
So, yes, Hurricane Earl was hyped by meteorologists and the media alike. Yes, that hype will likely turn out to have been for naught. But in dealing the the unpredictable, uncontrollable forces of mother nature, I’m still going with the trusted mantra “It’s better safe, than sorry.”
(Speaking of Earl, wondering how storms get their names? Read this.)