READ: Hurricane Study Introduction
Introduction
Are Female Hurricanes Deadlier than Male Hurricanes?
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Apparently sexism isn't just a social problem -- if you're in the path of a hurricane, gender bias might actually kill you. A study suggests people prepare differently for hurricanes depending on whether the storm has a male or female name. "Feminine-named hurricanes (vs. masculine- named hurricanes) cause significantly more deaths, apparently because they lead to a lower perceived risk and consequently less preparedness," a team of researchers wrote in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. In other words, a hurricane named "Priscilla" might not make people flee like a hurricane named "Bruno" would. |
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The study analyzed death rates from U.S. hurricanes from 1950 to 2012. "For severe storms, where taking protective action would have the greatest potential to save lives, the masculinity- femininity of a hurricane's name predicted its death toll," the study said. Hurricane Katrina in 2005, which left more than 1,800 people dead, was not included in the study because it was considered a statistical outlier. Neither was Hurricane Audrey in 1957, which killed 416 people. The study does note that both of those very deadly hurricanes had female names. |
Why name hurricanes anyway? Giving hurricanes short, easy-to-remember names helps reduce confusion when two or more tropical storms are brewing at the same time, the National Hurricane Center said. For decades, all hurricanes were given female names in part because hurricanes were unpredictable, the study said, citing the "Encyclopedia of Hurricanes, Typhoons and Cyclones." "This practice came to an end in 1979 with increasing societal awareness of sexism, and an alternating male-female naming system was adopted," the report said.
Each year's list of hurricane names is alphabetical, alternating between male and female monikers. A U.N. World Meteorological Organization committee has already set up six years' worth of names. The lists repeat after each six-year cycle. "The only time that there is a change is if a storm is so deadly or costly that the future use of its name on a different storm would be inappropriate for obvious reasons of sensitivity," the National Hurricane Center said.