By Alan Wooten | The Center Square
(Worthy News) – Nothing like Helene, and nothing like three hurricanes making landfall in 66 days.
Sunday’s end to the hurricane season for the Atlantic Basin was welcomed from the Gulf states to the Atlantic seaboard, with gratitude not a single one made landfall in the United States. A year ago, Hurricane Helene was among the three in just over two months that arrived in Florida, and its destruction was most heavily felt in North Carolina with 108 deaths and an estimated $60 billion to $80 billion in damages.
This is the 62nd week of recovery from Helene.
“That was a much-needed break,” said Dr, Neil Jacobs, under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration administrator. “Still, a tropical storm caused damage and casualties in the Carolinas, distant hurricanes created rough ocean waters that caused property damage along the East Coast, and neighboring countries experienced direct hits from hurricanes.”
This is the eighth year this century with no hurricane landfalls in the Atlantic season. The previous years were 2000, 2001, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2013 and 2015.
Thirteen storms reached a level to be named, five escalated to Category 1 (sustained winds of 74 mph or greater) and four of those eclipsed Category 3 (sustained winds 111 mph or greater).
Hurricanes Humberto and Imelda on Sept. 30 drew as close as 450 to 600 miles apart in the Atlantic Ocean, churning up the surf along much of the East Coast and drawing a warning for storm surge between Florida and South Carolina. Imelda ultimately was drawn toward and followed Humberto out to sea, enabling the Carolinas to avert catastrophe.
Erin, however, was a different story. Once a Category 5 (sustained winds 157 mph or greater) in the ocean, the storm temporarily shuttered four ferries in North Carolina and closed the 148-mile famed N.C. 12.
Tropical Storm Barry in June was the closest threat to Gulf Coast states. Imelda was the closest threat to Florida.
In Florida in 2024, Debby made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane near Steinhatchee on Aug. 5, Helene made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane in Dekle Beach on Sept. 26, and Milton made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane near Siesta Key on Oct. 9.
The 2024 season had 18 named storms, 11 reaching at least Category 1 hurricane level, and five of those accorded major hurricane level (Category 3 or worse).
Copyright 1999-2025 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
More Worthy News
President Donald Trump said on Nov. 27 that the United States could “substantially” reduce — and potentially eliminate — federal income taxes within the next few years, citing what he described as unprecedented revenue generated from his tariff policies.
The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season ended Sunday with welcome relief along the Gulf and East Coasts, standing in sharp contrast to last year’s string of landfalls. No hurricanes struck the United States this season—a respite for communities still in their 62nd week of recovery from Hurricane Helene, which devastated North Carolina after hitting Florida during a 66-day stretch of storms in 2024. Though rough surf and minor coastal impacts occurred, it marked the eighth season this century without a U.S. hurricane landfall.
Israel’s Defense Ministry will deliver its first full Iron Beam high-energy laser battery to the IDF on December 30. The move marks the world’s first deployment of a high-power laser air-defense system into regular frontline service. Defense Ministry R&D chief Dani Gold confirmed the rollout date on Monday, calling it the system’s “first capability,” with more upgrades already in development.
Indonesian Christian volunteers are rushing aid to residents who say the government has been slow to help after floods and landslides on Indonesia’s Sumatra island killed at least hundreds of people and displaced hundreds of thousands.
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) and the Syrian Ministry of Interior announced Sunday that a joint operation has located and destroyed more than 15 ISIS weapons-storage sites in southern Syria, marking one of the most extensive counter-terrorism strikes carried out in the region this year.
Sudan’s military rulers have quietly offered Russia its first-ever African naval base—an arrangement that would hand the Kremlin a powerful strategic foothold over the Red Sea, one of the world’s most critical and contested trade arteries—according to a Wall Street Journal exclusive.
U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators wrapped up more than four hours of discussions Sunday aimed at securing a framework to end the war with Russia, calling the session “productive” as top American envoys prepare to travel to Moscow for the next round of diplomacy.