Experts predict quiet Atlantic hurricane season in 2015

Hurricane Arthur is seen moving up the east coast of the United States in an image taken from NOAA's Goes-East satellite taken July 3, 2014. The 2015 Atlantic hurricane season opens on Monday, and a combination of a forecast for fewer-than-average storms and the highest level ever of financial resources on hand in Florida to pay claims may help homeowners and businesses there weather fears of a storm. [Photo/Agencies]

KINGSTON - The 2015 Atlantic hurricane season began on Monday, with the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicting that it will be a quieter-than-normal one.

The NOAA had predicted a 70-percent likelihood of six to 11 named storms, of which three to six could become hurricanes including zero to two major hurricanes for this season.

The main reason of a quiet season this year is a strengthening El Nino, which is forecast to last throughout the hurricane season, according to the NOAA.

However, Barbados-based Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) warned countries in the region not to become complacent despite the "below-normal" forecast, where the average was around 12 storms, six hurricanes and three major hurricanes.

Addressing a pre-season press conference, CDEMA Executive Director Ronald Jackson urged the Caribbean countries not to treat the prediction as a reason for complacency because previous evidence showed that the prediction might not reflect the reality.

"We have to recognize that it only takes one tropical disturbance to cause significant damage to our already fragile ecosystems, our already fragile economies which are centered around coastlines and settlements that are very much based along waterways," Jackson said.

Jackson's opinion was echoed by NOAA Administrator Kathryn Sullivan. "A below-normal season doesn't mean we're off the hook. As we've seen before, below-normal seasons can still produce catastrophic impacts to communities."

The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30 with the peak period from early August through the end of October, which will impact areas including the entire Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico.