Just in time for storm season, the IRE and NICAR Database Library has updated its Storm Events database through Dec. 31, 2005. The data contains information about last season's hurricanes, including Hurricane Katrina.
The database includes more than 600,000 records of U.S. storm events ranging from hail and flooding to hurricanes and tornadoes. Each record contains details about fatalities and injuries, damage to crops and property, and remarks about the storm. Many of the storm records include latitude and longitude data, which can be used to map the locations using geographic information system (GIS) software.
In addition to information on recent storms, the database has archival information as far back as 1950.
To order the storm events data, contact the database library at 573-884-7711 or download an order form at www.ire.org/datalibrary/orderform.