var content = "BE PREPARED FOR HURRICANE 2010 SEASON~By Bridgette Maryland~~Hurricane season, June 1 to November 30, has come once again opening the eyes and ears of many curiously and cautiously waiting and preparing for an area invasion, especially after being devastated by Hurricane Ike’s presence September 13, 2008.~An above-average season is predicted and now is the time to prepare families, homes and businesses. The Department of Atmospheric Science predicts 15 Named Storms, including 8 Hurricanes & 4 Major Storms (CAT 3, 4, 5), 44% probability for at least one major storm between Florida to Brownsville (the average over the last century is 30%) 58% probability of at least one major storm to track into the Caribbean (the average over the last century is 42%).~According to the National Hurricane Center, when a hurricane watch is issued this means a hurricane condition is present and specific areas are usually issued within 36 hours. A warning is the more serious of the two and is issued within 24 hours, if sustained winds of 74 mph or higher are expected.~The Houston/Galveston National Weather Service says hurricanes usually originate as a cluster of showers and thunderstorms in tropical waters. The process by which a disturbance forms and subsequently strengthens into a hurricane depends on many conditions.  Warm water and moisture, favorable low level winds, and light upper level winds are three factors which must be met before a hurricane forms.  A hurricane’s main source of energy comes from heat and a developing hurricane gathers heat and energy through contact with warm ocean waters.~Hurricanes lose strength and eventually break up above land, often causing floods and wind damage far from shore. The typical hurricane has two or three and sometimes more outer convective bands that are comprised of cells resembling ordinary thunderstorms and can be up to 300 miles from the center.~Hurricanes have devastated the Texas coast many times. Ike was the last major hurricane to affect the upper Texas coast and Hurricane Alicia was prior to that in 1983.  Preparation is essential to surviving a hurricane. People must have accurate information in order for them to make good decisions. Three pieces of information are fundamental to this process: 1) A home’s elevation can get checked by local officials to determine whether a home is subject to storm surge flooding and the nearest National Weather Service office can give flood-stage data for nearby streams and rivers. 2) The best route to safety when forced to leave is to plan an escape route in advance, keep at least a full tank of gas, check the flood history, and calculate the hours it will take to reach a safe area. Allow time to locate family members, pack the vehicle and get underway. 3) The emergency management official gives the location of the official shelter sites near homes. Get ideas of items to include in the disaster supply kit. Make allowance for infants and other family members who may heave special requirements.~“It is extremely important for Texans in coastal cities to be aware of local weather conditions and monitor the situation if there is a disturbance in the Gulf,” said Butch Smith, director of the Texas Transitional Recovery Office of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). “If a tropical disturbance is in the Gulf, keep a full tank of gas in your car, so you can leave immediately when local officials give the word to evacuate.”~The Texas Department of Insurance advises planning ahead to keep a natural disaster from becoming an insurance disaster.  Failure to prepare can increase damage and slow down or even decrease insurance claim payments.";

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