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from the editor What Have We Learned? In August we'll mark the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Andrew. It's a milestone in so many ways. Unforgettably, there is the horrific devastation it caused: more than 60 persons killed, hundreds of thousands left homeless, the multi-billion-dollar damage… it goes on and on. To find some good that came out of Andrew you have to consider it as a tipping point for the state of Florida to unify its variant building codes across counties and, at the urging of professionals (notably the International Hurricane Protection Association), to include provisions in the new statewide building code to protect residents and structures from windstorm and debris damage, rapid pressure changes and storm surge. Hurricane Andrew, as it swept across the Florida peninsula, also served to remind us you don't have to live in a coastal community to be affected by a storm— even a much smaller one. Andrew snapped hurricane amnesia with a vengeance for those living anywhere in the state. There's at least one other way Hurricane Andrew stands as a historical marker: It demonstrated the simple fact that any year could be "the year." Ironically, 1992 was not a big year for storms. There were only six named storms that year: two tropical storms and four hurricanes. The season got off to a slow start, too. Andrew, as its name indicates, was the first storm and didn't form until August. This year, hurricane experts forecast a below average, or near normal season (see Seasonal Forecast, page 10). Unlike 1992, this season couldn't wait to get started. By the traditional start date, June 1, there already had been two named storms: Alberto and Beryl. Tropical Storm Beryl made landfall and in doing so broke historical records by being the strongest storm to hit the U.S. Atlantic coast before the official start of hurricane season. And, as it happens, Beryl hit the coast during National Hurricane Preparedness Week. Almost as if it were giving us a pre-season test. If someone is trying to tell us something, he or she isn't exactly being subtle about it. Have we learned anything since Andrew? Undoubtedly some of us have. Miami- Dade County has enacted the country's most stringent building codes and mitigation and protection product approval process. Many other states have followed, updating codes for coastal counties using higher standards. Farther inland, states are taking what has been learned from Andrew and are applying this knowledge to tornado- prone areas (see Special Report, page 14). An anniversary is a good time to reflect on where we've been, how we got where we are and what we've learned along the way. We know we can't stop the next Andrew, but we can stop the next storm from doing so much damage. STORM SECURITY & P R O T E C T I O N 2012 FORECAST Vol. III, No. 2 stormsecuritymag.com Publisher Web site: National Sales: Kerri Caldwell (773) 775-9293 kcaldwell@kasnicmedia.com Office Manager/ circulation Director: Tammy Cook tcook@kasnicmedia.com Sales Support Emily Garcia egarcia@kasnicmedia.com Design & Production: Lynda Cassidy (480) 276-3991 lcassidy@kasnicmedia.com editorial contributors: Don Leggett Dean Lewis Sid Peterson Howard Shingle kasnicmedia, LLC KasNic Media, LLc 6430 North central Avenue Suite 206 chicago, Illinois 60646 (773) 775-9293 Howard Shingle Editor at Large Kerri Caldwell Publisher Storm & Security Protection 4 STORM&SecURITy PROTecTION / 2012 FORECAST The views and comments expressed by contrib- utors do not necessarily represent those of the publisher. Advertisers assume complete liability for all content of advertisements including text, representation and illustrations.