Instead of an internet sensation to be lampooned or commented about, the next popular Karen could be a force of nature.
Hurricane season officially starts on June 1, and the World Meteorological Organization has a list of 21 names chosen names ready in anticipation of these storms. Some of the names used by the organization are repeated every six years, with the names for 2025 recycled from 2019’s hurricane season.
Not all of the names used this year were used in 2019. Dexter replaces Dorian after a Category 5 storm devastated Grand Bahama and the Great Abaco Islands, before it shrank and made landfall close to North Carolina, according to The Weather Channel.
Two more names that were not used in 2019 or ever before, since the naming process was overhauled to include both female and male names, are Van and Wendy, The Weather Channel added.
Each year’s hurricane name list features 21 instead of 26 because “it is difficult to find six suitable names (one for each of the 6 rotating lists) starting with Q, U, X, Y and Z,” the organization stated on its website.
Along with Dexter, Karen, Van and Wendy, the following names have been chosen for the Atlantic hurricane season:
AndreaBarryChantalErinFernandGabrielleHumbertoImeldaJerryLorenzoMelissaNestorOlgaPabloRebekahSebastienTanya
In 2021, the organization opted to switch from Greek letters to a list of supplemental names when more storms take shape during a particular year. Those names are:
AdriaBraylenCaridadDeshawnEmeryFosterGemmaHeathIslaJacobusKenzieLucioMakaylaNolanOrlandaPaxRoninSophieTayshuanVivianaWill
Names are retired or withdrawn if a previous storm with a particular name causes massive damage and results in human deaths, the World Meteorological Organization stated.
Particular names that have been retired because of catastrophic hurricanes include Katrina, Sandy, Irma and Maria. In 2024, the names Beryl, Helene and Milton were retired.
