Historically, 2 named storms before beginning of hurricane season is uncommon

Just last week we were talking about Tropical Storm Arthur, and now as we wind down the month of May we are discussing another early-season system.

Since 2015 we’ve had a storm develop before the official start of the Atlantic Hurricane Season, but having two storms? That is rather rare.

Since 1851, there have only been six years where we have had two Atlantic named storms before June 1.

The first recorded occurrence of this dates all the way back to 1887, where two storms developed in the month of May.

In March 1908 we had a storm develop, then another in May of the same year. A January tropical storm was recorded in 1951, then there was Hurricane Able that May.

In recent memory, 2012 produced Tropical Storm Alberto and Tropical Storm Beryl in the month of May. Then in 2016, we had Hurricane Alex in January. Tropical Storm Bonnie then developed in May. Now as we continue into 2020, we can cross Arthur and Bertha off the list.

It’s also worth noting that this is the fourth Atlantic storm with the name Bertha to make continental US landfall. One of those was in 1996, when Bertha, a category 2 hurricane, made landfall in southeastern North Carolina.

We must remember that an early start doesn’t always mean an active year, but it’s a good reminder to be ready now for whatever the upcoming season holds.