There will be no other Hurricane Helene. That name, along with Beryl, Milton and John, was "retired" Wednesday by the World Meteorological Organization, the group that compiles the annual lists of storm names.
A storm name is retired when it is particularly deadly or destructive.
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Hurricane Beryl was the earliest Atlantic basin Category 5 hurricane on record in July 2024. It hit the Texas Gulf coast as a Category 1 storm, and left millions without power for days during the sweltering Texas summer.
Hurricanes Helene and Milton caused catastrophic damage through the southeast United States, including more than 200 deaths.
Hurricane John triggered deadly and extended flooding in the Mexican state of Guerrero.
The WMO has removed Helene, Beryl and Milton from the list of Atlantic hurricane names. The name John is retired from the list for storms in the eastern Pacific.
Each year, the WMO issues an alphabetical list of short, recognizable names to be used in the upcoming hurricane season. (There are no names starting with Q, U, X, Y and Z.)
There are six lists which rotate over six years. When a name is retired, it is replaced by another name that begins with the same letter.
A different list is used for each of the 10 different geographic regions around the world. The Caribbean and Atlantic list applies to hurricanes with the potential to hit the eastern United States, including North Carolina.
The list of hurricane names for the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season is:
- Andrea
- Barry
- Chantal
- Dexter
- Erin
- Fernand
- Gabrielle
- Humberto
- Imelda
- Jerry
- Karen
- Lorenzo
- Melissa
- Nestor
- Olga
- Pablo
- Rebekah
- Sebastien
- Tanya
- Van
- Wendy