The Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale is a classification used for some western hemisphere tropical cyclones that exceed the intensities of tropical depressions and tropical storms. The scale divides hurricanes into five categories distinguished by the intensities of their sustained winds. This scale and hurricane force winds are not the only factors that must be considered though. Storm surge and water rise, wave height, flooding from rain, and tornados spawned from a hurricane can also have a major impact on the loss of life and property.

Hurricane season in the Atlantic begins June 1st and ends November 30th. The Eastern Pacific hurricane season begins May 15th and also ends November 30th. 

Hurricane prediction experts Philip J. Klotzbach and William M. Gray of the University of Colorado Department of Atmospheric Science “continue to foresee well above-average activity for the 2011 Atlantic hurricane season. Our seasonal forecast has been reduced slightly from early December, since there is a little uncertainty about ENSO and the maintenance of anomalously warm tropical Atlantic SST conditions. We continue to anticipate an above-average probability of United States and Caribbean major hurricane landfall.”