Storm Surge

Among the persistent mysteries is why hurricanes like Isabel start out big and then diminish while others, like Andrew in 1992 and Camille in 1969, get stronger just before they make landfall. Only three Category 5 storms have hit the U.S. over the past 100 years — Andrew, Camille and the Labor Day storm of 1935--and Isabel was not one of them. But a fast-fading Category 2 hurricane — which is what Isabel was as it slammed into North Carolina and Virginia — is still a formidable force.

Besides, no one is counting the 2003 hurricane season out just yet. For one consequence of increased activity in the Atlantic is an extension of prime conditions for hurricanes well into the month of October. Like a scorpion, this hurricane season may turn out to have a stinging tail.