South Florida officials remind residents to prepare as experts predict busy hurricane season

MIAMI (AP) — As experts predict one of the busiest Atlantic hurricane seasons on record, officials in South Florida want residents and visitors to prepare and be safe.

Miami-Dade County officials and emergency management workers held a news conference Thursday to offer a reminder on hurricane preparedness. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is predicting between 17 and 25 named storms this summer and fall, with 8 to 13 achieving hurricane status, with at least 75 mph (120 kph) sustained winds, and four to seven becoming major hurricanes, with at least 111 mph (178 kph) winds. An average Atlantic hurricane season produces 14 named storms, seven of them hurricanes and three major hurricanes.

Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava took the impending hurricane season as a chance to point out other potential threats.

“The reality is that here in Miami-Dade County, we’re not only susceptible to hurricanes, but other kinds of hazards that come as a result of extreme weather, like heat, storms and floods,” Levine Cava said. “And we know that climate change is only making things worse.”