'Very active' Atlantic hurricane season predicted by university team

FORT COLLINS, Colo.—The Atlantic basin should be prepared for a “very active” hurricane season this year, according to an updated forecast issued Wednesday by the Tropical Meteorology Project at Colorado State University.

The forecast team left its June 1 forecast unchanged, calling for 16 named storms to form during the season, which runs through Nov. 30. Nine of those storms are expected to grow to hurricane strength, with five becoming major hurricanes with sustained winds of at least 111 mph, according to the forecast.

As of July 31, four named storms had formed, and a fifth—Tropical Storm Emily—is moving westward across the Caribbean Sea, according to the National Hurricane Center.

In addition, the Fort Collins, Colo.-based team said it anticipates “a well above-average probability of United States and Caribbean major hurricane landfall.”