Talkin' Tropics

July 12, 1996 -- North Carolina was blasted by "Big Bertha." Eleven years ago, Hurricane Bertha was making landfall near Topsail Beach with wind gusts unofficially reported at up to 144mph.

Fast forward to July 12, 2007 and all is quiet in the tropics today, which is really not all that unusual. The tropics typically wait until late summer before things really start to become active. In fact, September is typically the peak month of the Atlantic hurricane season. So just because the tropics have been quiet this month, don't let your guard down. There is still plenty of time for storms to form. Now is the time to make sure you are prepared. We've prepared information on hurricane preparedness for coastal residents and inland residents. Check it out anytime on Carolina on Demand. You'll find Carolina on Demand on Time Warner digital channel 1234 across the Carolinas.

On a side note, there was an interesting article on storm damage in the Houston Chronicle yesterday. The article sites a study that shows Hurricane Katrina's damage in New Orleans may not have been the worst hurricane damage ever in the United States. That study says that if the Galveston 1900 hurricane were to occur today it would likely be more costly than Katrina. You can read the article by clicking to http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hurricane/4958493.html

And if you're interested in reading more about Hurricane Bertha in North Carolina eleven years ago, visit http://lwf.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/reports/bertha/bertha.html