Officials discuss subtropical storm at Broward County EOC

Subtropical storm Alberto not expected to strengthen rapidly, NHC director says

PLANTATION, Fla. – A hurricane readiness workshop was held Friday at the Broward Emergency Operations Center in Plantation.

The workshop is an annual event, but it certainly was highlighted by the system forming in the Gulf of Mexico. Despite that, there was some good news.

The National Hurricane Center has reduced forecasting errors 15 to 20 percent since 2011. In fact, the 48-hour forecast on Hurricane Irma last year was nearly perfect.

We are in an Enso or neutral pattern, so there is no El Niño or La Niña to be concerned about. 

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Last year was the seventh most active season in 167 years. This year is expected to be less active than last year, but it appears it is getting started early with subtropical storm Alberto. 

"The focus is that the winds are not very strong near the center," said Dr. Ed Rappaport, deputy director of the National Hurricane Center. "They're stronger further out, so this is a little bigger storm than what we had with a traditional tropical storm. The good news though is because of that structure, it's not likely to strengthen very rapidly. So what we're looking at is a potential tropical storm maybe for the northern gulf coast."

Rappaport said people should continue to monitor the weather throughout Memorial Day weekend as some tornadoes could possibly land as a result from the system. 

The Broward County EOC is currently undergoing some remodeling, but weather officials said it will be ready by the time it is needed for any emergency operations. 

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