Another El Ni?o Coming?
NU Online News Service, Jan. 23, 2:31 p.m. EST?A meteorological consulting firm is suggesting that El Ni?o, the big world weather generator that can alter storm tracks and rainfall, might be on the way back this year.
Compu-Weather of Hopewell Junction, N.Y. said El Ni?o could return in early spring and affect the United States by late summer.
The firm noted that a severe El Ni?o in 1997-98 caused flooding in California and along the Gulf Coast.
On the plus side, Compu-Weather noted that El Ni?o's clouds can have their silver linings, reporting that the 1997-98 event was responsible, at least in part, for a warm winter across the northern United States that saved millions on heating bills.
It also credited the past El Ni?o with saving the lives of people who otherwise might have been killed in accidents on icy roads.
Compu-Weather said El Ni?os also tend to reduce the number and strength of hurricanes over the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico and the 1997 hurricane season was one of the quietest of the decade.
If El Ni?o develops as expected, according to Compu-Weather, the Pacific Northwest will likely experience drier than normal conditions in the fall. Then next winter, the area from Louisiana over to Florida, and possibly southern California, could experience wetter than normal conditions, while the northern Great Plains could experience warmer than normal temperatures.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free PropertyCasualty360 Digital Reader
Your access to unlimited PropertyCasualty360 content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
