Quote:

---

The 2004 Atlantic hurricane season officially started June 1, 2004, and will last until November 30, 2004. This is the period of the year that most tropical cyclones form in the Atlantic Ocean.

The 2004 season has had numerous unusual occurrences. The first named storm of the season formed on August 1, giving the season the fifth-latest start since 1952. Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley became the first storms to hit the same U.S. state (Florida) in a 24 hour period since 1906. Florida continued to be hit by hurricanes with Hurricane Frances, the first time two hurricanes have hit the same state since the 1995 season.

Other storms were individually unusual. Hurricane Alex was the strongest hurricane to intensify north of 38 degrees. Hurricane Ivan went the other direction, becoming the first major hurricane on record to form at around the 10 degree latitude. Ivan then left a trail of destruction stretching from the Windward Islands to Alabama. One storm, Tropical Storm Earl, died out, crossed over into the Pacific Ocean, regenerated and became Hurricane Frank in the eastern Pacific.

August 2004 was unusually active, with eight named storms forming during the month. In an average year, only three or four storms would be named in August. The formation of eight named storms in August breaks the old record of seven for the month, set in the 1933 and 1995 seasons. It also ties with September 2002 for the most Atlantic tropical storms to form in any month.

---