"Forecasters from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration say they are expecting an average Atlantic hurricane season this year, with four to seven hurricanes.

But this year's forecast came with a lot of caveats and a call for the public to pay more attention to the risks posed by rising water, as well as wind and rain.

Government officials said they wanted to avoid a repeat of last year, when thousands of people near Galveston, Texas, refused to evacuate as Hurricane Ike approached. Dozens died from the storm surge, which pushed ocean water up over a 17-footl seawall and flooded thousands of homes."

Jon Hamilton reports for NPR's All Things Considered May 21, 2009. [2]