2001 Hypothetical Atlantic hurricane season

The 2001 Atlantic hurricane season was a somewhat below-average Atlantic hurricane season. Only one major hurricane formed, Hurricane Bert, and its damage was minimal. The most notable storm of the season was Tropical Storm Allison, which became the first Atlantic tropical storm to have its name retired.

Tropical Storm Allison
An area of low pressure formed from an upper-level trough on June 8th. Tracking northward in the Gulf of Mexico, the low began to rapidly strengthen. By the time the NHC issued advisories at 12:00 EST, the low had already strengthened into a tropical storm, and the NHC upgraded the system to Tropical Storm Allison without first upgrading it to a depression.

As it continued tracking northwest, Allison still continued to strengthen over the Gulf of Mexico under favorable conditions. By June 9th, it was expected to become a hurricane, but upper-level winds became less favorable for development, and Allison instead maintained tropical storm intensity. The Gulf coast of Texas was in danger from the approaching storm, and the NHC issued a tropical storm warning for the coastline stretching from Houston to Rockport. Because of the storm's relatively weak strength, preparations took little time to complete, but some 10,000 people still evacuated from the lower Texas area.

On June 10th, 18:00 UTC, Tropical Storm Allison made landfall just south of Galveston. While the storm was rather weak, it turned out to be very destructive. Wind gusts of up to 90 miles per hour were recorded in Houston as Allison crashed into the coast of Texas. Rainfall from the storm caused severe flooding across the Galveston area as far inland as Houston as Allison stalled over the Lone Star State, dumping torrential rain everywhere in its path. Allison weakened slowly over the course of an entire day before it finally degenerated to a remnant low on June 11th. Damage from the storm was expansive, totaling to $8 million USD as 29 fatalities occurred from the dangerous floodwaters that Allison produced.

Hurricane Bert
A tropical wave east of the Leeward Islands was the source of Tropical Depression Two, which developed on July 2nd. Moving slowly westward, the depression gradually began to strengthen over the tropical Atlantic. Low wind shear and warm water temperatures proved to be ideal for rapid intensification, and the rapidly strengthening system was upgraded to Tropical Storm Bert at 7:00 UTC the next day. That morning, Bert began to rapidly strengthen, becoming a hurricane at 10:00 UTC, the first of the 2001 season. Turning somewhat northwestward, the hurricane continued to greatly intensify, and just 4 hours later became the first and only major hurricane of the year.

Initially expected to strike the Virgin Islands, Bert continued to track slowly northwest as wind shear began to move into the Atlantic. Weakening was not prominent in Bert as the large storm's rainbands brushed the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. Only the Dominican Republic would feel tropical storm-force winds as Bert continued to stay out in the open ocean. Damage was reported to be minimal, and only 2 injuries were reported after 2 children slipped on a wet staircase.

Bert began to weaken as wind shear strengthened, and it was no longer a major hurricane by the time it had reached the Carolinas on July 8th. A weather buoy reported a wave height of 60 feet as Bert stayed off shore. As the hurricane moved into cooler waters, it steadily resumed weakening, being downgraded to a tropical storm off the coast of Delaware on July 10th. By that time, wind shear had dissipated, but Bert was now over the cold waters of New England, and it transitioned to a post-tropical cyclone the next day. The storm continued northeast for a few more days before it dissipated near the Faroe Islands on July 13th.