Has the name Keith been retired?
Yes. Keith is on NHC’s list of retired Atlantic names because of the 2000 storm. It is one of 100 names retired there since 1954 (Tropical Cyclone Naming History and Retired Names).
A name is retired when a storm was so deadly or costly that using the name again would be insensitive; the World Meteorological Organization then picks a new name with the same first letter at its annual meeting.
When will Keith be used again?
It won’t be. Retired names are not used again on the Atlantic lists. Its place on the list, the K slot, now belongs to Kirk, on the 2030 Atlantic list, which is next used in 2030.
Why was the storm named Keith?
Names go in alphabetical order, one per storm, as each storm reaches tropical-storm strength (39 mph, 34 knots), so a storm’s place in its season decides its name.
In both 2000 and 1988, Keith was the 11th name used in the Atlantic season.
Keith in other oceans
Storms named Keith appear in more than one ocean in our archive:
- Atlantic: 1988 and 2000
- West Pacific: 1997
Each ocean region keeps its own name lists, drawn up by its own WMO regional committee (Tropical cyclone naming), so the same name can be given to unrelated storms in different oceans.