Two Hurricane Names Retired

Hurricanes Igor and Tomas are no longer a threat.

The World Meteorological Organization has retired the two names from those used in 2010 because of the damage they caused. Names are retired from time to time to avoid confusion.

There are six lists of hurricane names used in rotation in the Atlantic and Caribbean region. When the 2010 list comes around again in 2016, Igor and Tomas will be replaced by Ian and Tobias.

Last year was a busy season with 19 named storms, but only two of them entered the United States. Bonnie crossed the southern tip of Florida as a tropical storm and then weakened to a depression before reaching Louisiana in July. Hermine made landfall in Texas as a tropical storm in September.

Igor struck Bermuda on Sept. 19 and then veered north, striking Cape Race, Newfoundland, on Sept. 21 where it killed three people and was the most damaging hurricane to strike there in 75 years.

Tomas became a hurricane on Oct. 30 after striking Barbados. It went on to affect Haiti — where 35 died in flooding and landslides — Jamaica, the Turks and Caicos Islands and St. Lucia, where 14 people were killed.