NOAA

The National Hurricane Center in Miami is keeping an eye on a system that could become Tropical Storm Ernesto early this week. The agency says there’s an 80% chance the area of disturbed weather could develop into a named storm. This comes as the center reminds Alabama Gulf coast residents and the nation that elements are lining up to make the peak of the 2024 hurricane season especially active.

Alabama Emergency Managers are warning beach goers that the current tropical storm Debby could generate stronger rip tides along the Gulf coast as it threatens Florida’s “big bend” area. The system is expected to grow into hurricane strength before making landfall in the Sunshine State.

The Dauphin Island Sea Lab is offering salt marsh excursions and other outings throughout the months of July and August

Beryl is a disorganized system in the Gulf of Mexico after hitting Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula and slamming parts of the Caribbean. As the storm moves toward Texas, weather forecasters are raising the concern of heavier rip currents along the Alabama and Florida Gulf coasts.

Hurricane Beryl ripped off roofs in Jamaica, jumbled fishing boats in Barbados and damaged or destroyed 95% of homes on a pair of islands in St. Vincent and the Grenadines before rumbling toward the Cayman Islands and taking aim at Mexico's Caribbean coast after leaving at least seven dead in its wake.

Hurricane Beryl roared through open waters on Tuesday as a monstrous Category 5 storm heading toward Jamaica after earlier making landfall in the southeast Caribbean, killing at least six people. A hurricane warning was in effect for Jamaica and a hurricane watch for Grand Cayman, Little Cayman, and for Haiti's entire southern coast.

Hurricane preparations along the Alabama Gulf coast enters a second phase today. Emergency managers in Gulf Shores are gathering local disaster officials and relief organizations for a strategy session

The Atlantic Hurricane season starts on June first. Early forecasts indicate that this year will have an above average number of storms. The Department of Atmospheric Science at Colorado State University is predicting twenty three named storms in 2024, along with eleven hurricanes

Hurricane Preparedness Week takes place May 5-11 in an effort to inform and equip people in the Southeast to be better prepared for the threat of a hurricane.

March officially begins the spring severe weather season in Alabama. This is the most active time for tornadoes in the state. Primary tornado season is early March through May, with the greatest number of tornadoes occurring in the month of April.