HOUSTON – The first forecast of the 2018 hurricane season was released Thursday.
Forecasters at Colorado State University’s Atmospheric Science Department said they expect a “slightly above average” season this year.
DOCUMENT: Read the CSU hurricane forecast
A total of 14 storms are forecast, with seven forecast to become hurricanes. Three are forecast to become major hurricanes, meaning a Category 3 storm or higher.
The forecast calls for a 38 percent chance of at least one major hurricane making landfall along the Gulf Coast from the Florida Panhandle to Brownsville, Texas. The average risk is 30 percent.
The chance of at least one major hurricane making landfall on the entire U.S. coastline is 63 percent, according to the forecast. The average risk is 52 percent.
Hurricane season begins June 1 and ends Nov. 30.
Interesting facts about hurricanes in Texas
KPRC2 chief meteorologist Frank Billingsley put together these facts about the history of hurricanes in the Lone Star State.
1960: A tropical storm in June dropped almost 30 inches of rain in Port Lavaca.
1967: Hurricane Beulah brought 27 inches of rain between Corpus Christi and San Antonio. The Goliad River rose to record levels.
2011: A big drought year, but Tropical Storm Don hit near South Padre Island.