In 2005, it was Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma. The year before that it was Ivan and Charley. One of the more costly hurricanes ever to hit the United States, Hurricane Andrew struck Florida in 1992. In 1965, it was Hurricane Betsy and in 1969 it was Hurricane Camille. The Galveston Hurricane struck in 1900. All of them hit the Gulf States, killing more than 9,100 people and causing billions of dollars worth of damage.

With such a long list of deadly hurricanes and more likely to hit in the future, it is critical that the five Gulf states take steps to prepare and protect their citizens from storms.

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Hurricane Katrina was one of the strongest storms to hit the United States in the past 100 years and will likely go down as one of the worst natural disasters in history. The storm, which hit on Aug. 29, led to more than 1,400 deaths along the Gulf Coast and more than $75 billion in damage.

But the Category 4 storm that struck Galveston, Texas, on Sept. 8, 1900, killed at least 8,000 people and caused $30 million in damage (in 1900 dollars). Estimates suggest that if a similar hurricane were to hit Galveston today, it would result in damages upward of $36 billion.

When Hurricane Andrew struck Florida in 1992 it caused $26 billion in damage. If that same storm were to hit Florida again, it would result in almost $70 billion worth of damage today.

Butch Loper, director of the Emergency Operations Center in Jackson County, Miss., told WLOX-TV that he was grateful the 2006 season was mild, but he warned residents to prepare for 2007.

'Don't let your guard down and be unprepared, because not every season will be as inactive as this one,' he said.

Ivor van Heerden, deputy director of the Louisiana State University Hurricane Center, told The New York Times that Louisiana’s levees must be raised and armored and floodgates built before another big storm hits.

'Nature’s given us a second chance. Katrina was the warning. Katrina showed us a lot of our weaknesses.'

Learn more about hurricanes and their impact from LSU’s Hurricane Center.