Hotel Mogul Threatens Lawsuit Over Hurricane Expert's Gloomy Forecasts

WKMG TV NEWS ^ | 12-1-2007

[Cagey]

Rosen: Fla. Lost Billions Of Dollars Because Of Incorrect Storm Outlook

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Central Florida's most famous hotel owner, Harris Rosen, lashed out at hurricane expert Dr. William Gray for his gloomy storm predictions saying they have damaged state tourism.

The hotel mogul said surveys show 70 percent of guests not returning to his hotels cited hurricane fears as the reason why.

"I suspect it costs the state billions of dollars," Rosen said. "Five thousand people scheduled to attend my association meeting and I'm looking at Orlando and it is September or October, I may say, 'Why take a chance.'"

Rosen said if people would stop paying attention to Gray, more people would come to Central Florida, Local 6's Chris Trenkmann said.

Other business owners are angry at Gray's predictions.

John Smith, who runs Storm Stoppers, a plywood alternative company that has benefited from busy storm seasons, spends thousand of dollars when an active year is predicted.

"What we do is stock up," Smith said. "When there is a let down, we have all of our capital invested in materials and you know, we have to wait until the next big weather event."

More and more business owners said they prefer that prognosticators keep their outlooks to themselves.

"A local meteorologist would not last as long as some of these prediction artists have been in business," Smith said.

Gray responded to Rosen's complaint, saying anytime there is a catastrophic hurricane season like in 2004, there will be a slowing down or hesitancy to return to Florida, Trenkmann reported.

Gray, of Colorado State University, predicted 17 named storms with nine becoming hurricanes.

The 2007 storm count came short of Gray's predicted totals and no hurricanes came near Florida in 2007.

The last time Central Floridians dealt with a major hurricane was in 2004.

Hurricane season officially ends Friday.

[RightResponse]

I love it!! Trial lawyers going after these global warming purveyors. It’s just poetic.....

Go get ‘em Harris!!

[Mr Ramsbotham]

The thing of it is, if they keep predicting bad hurricane seasons, sooner or later they’re bound to get one. Then their reputations will be graven in stone.

[Strategerist]

I love it!! Trial lawyers going after these global warming purveyors.

Dr. William Gray is a fanatical Global Warming OPPONENT.

I've pretty much given up hope anyone on this board will bother to ever remotely learn anything about the subjects they post about.

[EggsAckley]

Everyone complains about the weather, but nobody does anything about it...................

[UCANSEE2]

Let’s see.... All the criminally wealthy global warming, carbon-credit salesmen getting sued and losing their shirts.

Hmmmmmmmmm..... Have you stocked up on beer and pretzels?
Popcorn for the kiddies?

Might see some REALITY TV after all.

[tje]

While I pretty much agree with global warming alarmists getting their pants sued off them... William Gray believes that Global Warming is a hoax.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/23/AR2006052301305_pf.html

[Old Professer]

Hasn’t Gray pretty much got out of this after the current year; or will the press hound him in retirement?

[edcoil]

While he is right, the government will not allow itself to be held liable.

We The People do not owe this guy money simply because we have inept "experts" in the weather forecasting business.

[Strategerist]

By the way, here was AccuWeather's forecast for this tropical season. If anyone is going to get sued, it's obvious AccuWeather, which is an embarassment to the profession of meteorology, should be.

Florida in the Bull’s Eye this Hurricane Season "We’re in for a Rough Year," Says AccuWeather.com’s Bastardi

Joe Bastardi 2007 Hurricane Forecast

STATE COLLEGE, PA, May 8, 2007 - AccuWeather.com Chief Hurricane Forecaster Joe Bastardi and his team expect this season’s hurricanes and tropical storms to pose a far greater threat to lives and property than last year’s, with significantly more storms striking the US.

In the AccuWeather.com 2007 Hurricane Season Forecast released today, Bastardi warns that six or seven storms will strike the US coast. This includes the possibility of multiple strikes by the same storm, such as the way Hurricanes Andrew and Katrina – both extreme examples – struck Florida before later striking the US Gulf Coast. The majority of these landfalls are projected for the Gulf Coast from the mouth of the Mississippi River to Cape Hatteras, NC, with the center of the bull’s eye on Florida."

[RightResponse]

"Central Florida's most famous hotel owner, Harris Rosen, lashed out at hurricane expert Dr. William Gray for his gloomy storm predictions saying they have damaged state tourism."

Hey pal, the guy says your Dr. made some gloomy predictions. You want me to research everything written here?

The larger point was that maybe a little specious sueing against the 'experts'-particularly weather experts-is a little delicious. So go have a donut and cop somebody else.

[Strategerist]

Hey pal, the guy says your Dr. made some gloomy predictions. You want me to research everything written here?

Yes.

[RightResponse]

Look, I never mentioned your guy, so give it up.

[Cagey]

Get to work, RR!

[RightResponse]

I have made NO error...

[Cagey]

I was just busting you.

I’m still searching for the one person who knows everything. He or she just has to be on this forum. LOL

[technomage]

You want me to research everything written here?

That would be a good start.

[RightResponse]

I’m cool... Nice pic, though. Is that a picture of Hogwarts?

[rellimpank]

-—don’t give up quite yet—see post #4—

-http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1932840/posts

[jdub]

I have made NO error...

You made two, actually. The first has already been covered. The second is that it is not the lawyer who will be suing the weather guy, it is the hotelier. The lawyer merely provides the legal assistance to the plaintiff to get his case heard.