Perry marks start of hurricane season

AUSTIN (KXAN/AP) - Gov. Rick Perry toured the Texas Department of Emergency Management on Friday, in conjunction with a state resource activation exercise marking the start of hurricane season.

"We prepare for the worst, we hope and pray for the best," Perry said. "That's the way we do business and it's served us well."

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Emergency Management officials led a hurricane emergency response exercise and headed a brief tour of equipment and resources at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.

"It's not just the coastal communities we need to worry about," said Nim Kidd, director of the DPS Emergency Management. "And no part of our state turns its back on Texans in need."

Various state officials and emergency responders were also on hand to discuss the 2012 Hurricane Season.

Texas has not had a FEMA disaster declaration for storms in the past two years, and the governor is cautiously optimistic that the state will be spared major damage during the hurricane season.

"We've been blessed coming off a relatively quiet hurricane season and projections are for an average season," he said. "But it's not if we're ever going to have another hurricane, it's going to be when."

The season is also taking the national spotlight as U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano wants to make sure Americans are prepared for the start of the Atlantic hurricane season.

The season begins Friday and Napolitano will join Federal Emergency Management Agency head Craig Fugate, as well as Florida Gov. Rick Scott to urge those likely to be affected by storms to prepare beforehand.

Officials will begin their public service campaign Friday at the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

While not officially beginning until Friday, the season has already seen two named storms. Tropical Storm Alberto formed off the coast of South Carolina on May 19 and dissipated a few days later. And on Memorial Day, Tropical Storm Beryl came ashore near Jacksonville, Fla., dumping 10 inches of rain in some areas of north Florida.

Hurricane season this year ends Nov. 30.

The 2011 hurricane season was one of the busiest on record. It produced 19 named storms including Irene, one of the costliest storms in U.S. history.