It has been over 8,644 days on Long Island without a direct strike of a hurricane. It has been over 25,817 days since Long Island had a direct strike from a MAJOR hurricane. Jinks! Long Islanders who know anything about our geographic position and history (I teach so I know most don’t) know that we are long overdue for a major hurricane. June 1st is the “official” start of hurricane season in the Atlantic Ocean. The National Hurricane Center http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ has just released its 2009 Atlantic Hurricane Forecast.
Could this be a busy hurricane season? Who knows? The official forecast says that a “near normal” tropical season is expected. They call for a 70-percent chance of having 9-14 named storms, of which four to seven could become hurricanes, including one to three major hurricanes (Category 3, 4 or 5). Ana will be the first named storm of the season. Meanwhile, just off of Cape Hatteras a Tropical Low #1 has developed. In my life I’ve surfed many hurricane swells on Long Island. I have also been around long enough to remember the last “major” one to hit here: Gloria. I was only around 10 years old but I remember being evacuated to the junior high school and missing the beginning of school because the power was out for what seemed like a week. Since then we have had a couple of close calls, a few tropical storms and depressions. We are long overdue. As a kid growing up I loved to track the storms and always “hoped” we’d get hit by one. Now as an adult and homeowner…well that view has changed! (http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/HAW2/english/prepare/family_plan.shtml )
As a surfer I love to see storms form and send us waves. It’s what we live for on the east coast. Most of the summer the waves on Long Island are small and weak. But when a tropical storm forms and enters our swell window everything changes. These swells make or break a Long Island surfers year. All those days paddling out in waist high mush vanish as long period groundswells fill in along the beaches from Long Beach to Montauk. Surfing Long Island on these swells is truly special...especially on Fire Island where it can be just you and a few buddies getting shacked.
The last truly great hurricane season in my opinion was 2004. That was the year of Rocktober. If you remember October 2004 saw sick storm swells for just about the entire month come to Long Island. Democrats Point was firing….I think that is the last time it was! Each year has its moments where everything comes together and the surf is perfect. Let’s hope this year is like that memorable one in 2004: awesome waves…and storms staying offshore! Please share your opinions on the best hurricane waves we've had in recent memory; post a comment!
Comments
David Mann said on Sunday, May 31, 2009:
Im all for wanting swells, but the last time a “major” hurricane directly hit long island, if im correct, was the great hurricane of 1938, and i do not want another one of those. It killed a lot of people and almost wiped out fire island, so lets not be praying for something like that.
bill said on Sunday, May 31, 2009:
What happened to Demo’s?
David said on Monday, June 01, 2009:
Demo hasnt been good for a while, the sandbar is always shifting and it has become more of a mushy outside break than a barreling jetty break.
Warbo said on Thursday, August 13, 2009:
Mann, I don’t think anyone is hoping for a direct hit like that, I would hope not. I grew up on Fire Island and have survived a few evacuations, even jet-skid in the streets. We really could use some decent storm surf though, I am ready to go for that!