Impacts From Storms Go Well Beyond The Cone

The 2026 hurricane season will be here before we know it! The official start date is June 1st, and the season runs through November 30th.

The World Meteorological Organization is in charge of maintaining and updating the name lists, which are recycled every six years. If a storm name is retired, then another name is selected to replace it.

Storm names are typically retired "if a storm is so deadly or costly that the future use of its name on a different storm would be inappropriate for obvious reasons of sensitivity," according to the National Hurricane Center.

(MORE: The name Melissa is the most recent name to be retired)

2026 Atlantic Hurricane Season Names

This year’s name list is almost identical to the 2020 list of names, but there is one new name that hasn't been used before. Do you know which one it is? (Answer is below the image - no peeking!)

The answer: Leah

Leah replaces Laura, which was retired due to the death and destruction it caused. Hurricane Laura was a Category 4 storm that made landfall near Cameron, Louisiana, back in August of 2020 and caused $19 billion in damage in the U.S.

The 2020 Hurricane Season went down as one of the most active seasons on record, so many of these names may trigger a memory from six years ago. Here is a list of past notable storms with a name on this year’s list.

Arthur (AR-thur) - Hurricane Arthur was a rare July hurricane that made landfall in eastern North Carolina on July 4, 2014. This was poor timing as many Independence Day celebrations were canceled. The National Hurricane Center determined this was the earliest hurricane to make landfall in North Carolina since records began in 1851.

Bertha (BUR-thuh) - Hurricane Bertha made landfall near Wilmington, North Carolina, in July of 1996. Bertha brought widespread flooding and wind damage to the East Coast and was responsible for $270 million in U.S. damages. I remember Bertha of 1996 well. Bertha cut my family's summer vacation short that year as we had to evacuate our hotel in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Cristobal (krees-TOH-bahl)- The last notable storm named Cristobal was not a hurricane, but a tropical storm back in June of 2000. Cristobal made landfall in Louisiana in June of 2020 and then slowly crawled north, maintaining tropical depression status as far north as Wisconsin. This was Wisconsin's first tropical depression. Jon Erdman, a senior meteorologist at weather.com, remembers Cristobal well. "That's the only time I can recall in over 33 years living in the upper Midwest a day that felt like Florida's tropical rain showers with gusty winds, yet without any lightning."

Dolly (DAH-lee) - Hurricane Dolly made landfall in South Padre Island, Texas in July of 2008. People in South Texas won't forget Dolly as it was the first storm since Bret (1999) to make landfall along the Deep South Texas barrier islands. Rainfall records were shattered, flooding resulted in water rescues and wind damage was widespread. Unfortunately, this storm had a huge impact on agriculture as there was a substantial loss of cotton and sorghum due to heavy rain and strong winds.

Edouard (eh-DWARD) - Hurricane Edouard was a major hurricane for an exceptionally long time of nearly 8 days back in late August and early September of 1996. Thankfully, this was while the hurricane was in the open Atlantic. Edouard weakened to a Category 1 storm as it brushed Nantucket Island (close to Cape Cod).

Fay (fay) - In August of 2008, Tropical Storm Fay took a very unusual track, including four landfalls in Florida alone. Significant flash flooding was an issue as Fay dumped 27 inches of rain near Melbourne, Florida.

Gonzalo (gohn-SAH-loh) - Hurricane Gonzalo made landfall on Bermuda as a Category 2 storm in October of 2014 causing extensive damage. This was bad timing as Gonzalo's landfall occurred only six days after Hurricane Fay made landfall on the island.

Hanna (HAN-uh)- Hurricane Hanna was the deadliest storm of the 2008 hurricane season. Haiti felt the worst impacts from the storm, where heavy rain and significant flooding resulted in an estimated 500 fatalities.

Isaias (ees-ah-EE-ahs) - “The name no one could pronounce.” Many of you may remember this storm because it brought widespread damage to the East Coast in August of 2020. At least 30 tornadoes were spawned by Isaias from South Carolina to New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Wind damage and flooding were widespread and over 5 million homes and businesses lost power. Here's our recap. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic complicated evacuations and clean-up efforts.

Josephine (JOH-seh-feen)- Josephine was the earliest forming "J" storm on record in the Atlantic season back in August of 2020.

Kyle (KY-ull) - Yes, tropical systems can make landfall in Canada! Hurricane Kyle, back in September of 2008, did just that. The storm made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane in Nova Scotia, which was the first hurricane to make landfall since Juan back in 2003.

Leah (LEE-ah) - replaces Laura, which was retired.

Marco (MAR-koe) - Going back to the 2020 hyperactive season, the forecast cones of Marco and Laura crossed, something meteorologists at weather.com couldn't remember happening before. Senior Meteorologist Jon Erdman tweeted this back in August of 2020, documenting this rare occurrence.

Nana (NA-na) - The previous storm named "Nana" was a Category 1 hurricane that made landfall in Belize back in September of 2020.

Omar (OH-mar) - A major hurricane that spared the Virgin Islands in a last minute shift to the east in October 2008.

Paulette (pawl-LET) - "Zombie Paulette?" Let me explain: Paulette made landfall on Bermuda as a strong Category 1 hurricane in September 2020. "After becoming a post-tropical cyclone east-southeast of Newfoundland on September 16, Paulette came back to life six days later as a tropical storm south of the Azores in the far eastern Atlantic Ocean," says meteorologist Jon Erdman here.

Rene (re-NAY) - The last named storm named "Rene" was in September of 2020. Rene formed off the coast of Africa near the Cabo Verde Islands. Rene dissipated in the open Atlantic.

Sally (SAL-ee) - Hurricane Sally was a Category 2 storm that made landfall near Gulf Shores, Alabama in September 2020. Southeast Alabama, southwest Georgia and the Florida Panhandle were hit hardest when it came to flooding.

Teddy (TEHD-ee) - Ginormous Hurricane Teddy was a major wave generator along the east coast back in September of 2020. NOAA hurricane hunter reconnaissance mission found Teddy's tropical storm-force wind field extended up to 550 miles from its center when Teddy transitioned from a hurricane to an extratropical storm.

Vicky (VIH-kee) - The name Vicky has only been used one other time, that was in 2020. Back on the morning of September 14, 2020, there were 5 named storms (Paulette, Rene, Sally, Teddy, Vicky) all in the Atlantic. This was the first time since 1971 that there had been five named storms in the Atlantic Basin at one time.

Wilfred (WILL-fred) - Just like Vicky, the name Wilfred has only been used one other time, in 2020. The "W" name is the last name on the list before an alternate list of names is used. Before 2021, this alternate list was the Greek alphabet. However, after the record-breaking 2020 season, the World Meteorological Organization's Hurricane Committee decided to use a supplemental list of names instead of the Greek alphabet starting in 2021. This list can be found here.

Tiffany Savona is a digital meteorologist for weather.com. She has 15+ years of experience tracking storms as a broadcast meteorologist across the country.