Hurricanes are now twice as likely to zip from minor to whopper than decades ago, study says

By SETH BORENSTEIN
AP Science Writer

A study says Atlantic hurricanes are now more than twice as likely as before to rapidly intensify from wimpy minor hurricanes to powerful and catastrophic in just 24 hours. Thursday’s study says it’s because of warmer ocean water that acts as fuel. The study says in the last 20 years 8.1% of the time storms powered from a Category 1 minor storm to a major hurricane in just 24 hours. That happened only 3.2% of the time from 1971 to 1990. Scientists and emergency managers worry about storms that rapidly intensify because they give people less time to react. It’s also harder for officials to prepare.