Today, the Colorado State University’s (CSU’s) Tropical Meteorology Project released its Extended Range Forecast of Atlantic Seasonal Hurricane Activity and Landfall Strike Probability for 2023. The researchers anticipate below-average activity for the upcoming season, which runs from June 1 to November 30. The team predicts there will be 13 named storms – those reaching the criteria for hurricanes, tropical storms, or sub-tropical storms – and that there is a 44 percent chance of at least one major hurricane making landfall somewhere on the entire U.S. coastline (with a 22 percent chance on the U.S. East Coast, including Peninsula Florida, and a 28 percent chance for the U.S. Gulf Coast from the Florida Panhandle to Brownsville, Texas).

This is the 40th year the CSU team has issued the forecast, which is intended to provide a best estimate of activity for the upcoming season – not an exact measure. CSU researchers remind entities in coastal areas that it only takes one hurricane making landfall to make it an active season for them. Organizations are, thus, encouraged to prepare the same for every season, regardless of how much activity is predicted. For more information on how your utility can prepare for hurricanes and other natural disasters visit the EPA's Drinking Water and Wastewater Resilience page and its Emergency Response for Drinking Water and Wastewater Utilities page. Access the full report at CSU.