Why El Niño can quiet hurricanes but raise Florida's tornado risk
FOX 35 Orlando's interview with NWS meteorologist Will Ulrich explains how the same atmospheric ingredient can have very different seasonal effects.
FOX 35 Orlando
Story of Why this story? The video opened at a pace of 51,828 views a day, 25 times a normal first day on this channel (2,072).
El Niño to bring heavy rain, tornadoes to Central Fla.
Things we can learn from the video
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- 0:33El Niño-related wind shear can suppress Atlantic hurricane activity.
- 1:36Ulrich explains the Pacific ocean-atmosphere pattern using maps of unusually warm equatorial waters.
- 5:18Winter storm-track changes and increased wind shear can raise Florida's severe-weather and tornado risks.
- 8:08Asked about extreme freezes, Ulrich says the El Niño outlook favors milder conditions overall.
- 11:05Home preparation becomes the focus, including tornado and severe-wind safety for manufactured and mobile homes.
Wind shear can work in Florida's favor during hurricane season, then become part of the problem in winter. That contrast is at the heart of FOX 35 Orlando's El Niño interview with Will Ulrich of the National Weather Service in Melbourne.
Speaking with Garrett Wymer and meteorologist Laurel Blanchard, Ulrich explains that El Niño can increase wind shear, changes in wind speed or direction with height. Those conditions can disrupt Atlantic hurricanes. But Florida's winter storm systems are a different matter: shifting storm tracks and greater shear can increase the threat of severe weather, including tornadoes.
The upload drew about 25,000 views in its first eight hours, an unusually strong start for the station's regular videos. Its heavy-rain-and-tornado title leads into a seasonal explanation, not an alert for a specific approaching storm. The segment also includes a graphic labeled "HISTORIC 2023 EL NIÑO."
Ulrich distinguishes a stormier winter from a colder one, saying El Niño is expected to bring milder conditions overall in the outlook he describes. Later, the conversation turns to preparation at home, with particular attention to manufactured and mobile homes.
His practical point extends beyond hurricane season: "Preparation is a 365-day activity, right? We don't need to just be doing it in May for hurricane season."
Published on Trari
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- Channel
- FOX 35 Orlando
- Subscribers
- 475,000
- Channel views, last 7 days
- 738,872
- Channel views, pace per day
- 122,424 (on a normal day: 144,038)
- Video published
- October 15, 2026
- Video views so far
- 24,709 (less than a day online)
- Video views, pace per day
- 51,828
The numbers
The interview's opening views are well above FOX 35 Orlando's usual start for regular videos.
💡 Test your knowledge
Which ocean is home to the equatorial warming associated with El Niño?
El Niño involves unusually warm surface waters in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific.