Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria devastated communities in the southern U.S. and Puerto Rico in 2017, and together resulted in around $265 billion in damage. Will the U.S. and Caribbean face more brutal storms this year? Forecasts of 2018’s looming hurricane season predict it could be more active than average — and you can start preparing for it now. North Carolina State University researchers report that 14 to 18 named tropical storms and hurricanes could form in the Atlantic basin in 2018.