Erika, Joaquin and Patricia Retired as Tropical Cyclone Names

The latest additions to the list of retired Atlantic basin hurricane names are Erika and Joaquin. Patricia, which became the strongest hurricane on record in either the eastern Pacific or Atlantic Ocean basins, has also been retired from the Eastern Pacific hurricane name list.

The World Meteorological Organization, which provides the name lists for tropical cyclones, announced the changes Monday.

(MORE: Why Hurricanes are Named)

When the list from 2015 is reused in 2021, Erika and Joaquin will be replaced with Elsa and Julian. The addition of Elsa will enhance the Disney theme in 2021 as Ana is also on the Atlantic list and Olaf appears on the Eastern Pacific list.

Both Erika and Joaquin were impactful storms that will be remembered in the Caribbean and Bahamas for the devastation they caused.

Tropical Storm Erika brought destructive flooding on the Caribbean island of Dominica. In addition to the damage to homes and roads, at least 20 people were killed by the flooding. Dominica's prime minister was quoted saying the flood damage set back his country's developmental progress 20 years. 

Hurricane Joaquin struck the Bahamas in early October 2015, becoming the latest Category 4 hurricane or stronger hurricane to impact the Bahamas. A total blackout occurred on three islands in the central Bahamas and Joaquin also contributed to the sinking of the cargo ship, El Faro. In addition, Joaquin helped to enhance moisture over the Southeast which assisted in setting the stage for the catastrophic flooding in South Carolina.

(MORE: 2015 Hurricane Season Recap)

Including Erika and Joaquin, 80 Atlantic tropical cyclone names have been retired since the naming of Atlantic tropical cyclones ditched the phonetic alphabet in 1953.

Only 20 seasons have not had a name retired, most recently in 2014. Another 22 seasons have had multiple names removed from future use, lead by the record-smashing 2005 hurricane season's five retirees.

Names beginning with the letter "I" lead the retirees with 10, followed by nine "C" storms, then eight "F" storms. Eight of those "I" storms have earned retirement just since 2001, including a four-year streak from 2001 through 2004 (Iris, Isidore, Isabel, Ivan, respectively). Wilma in 2005 is the deepest-in-the-alphabet retiree.

For example, Katrina, Rita and Wilma are the big three you undoubtedly remember from 2005. You may have forgotten about Dennis and Stan, however. Did you know Stan may have been more deadly than Katrina?

The retired Atlantic storms weren't all necessarily intense Category 3, 4 or 5 hurricanes. In fact, a good number of them were retired due to their deadly flooding in the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America, or the United States.

(MORE: 75 Percent of U.S. Hurricane Deaths From Water, Not Wind)

Some examples of this include not only 2015's Erika, but also 2013's Ingrid in Mexico, 1996's Hortense in Puerto Rico and 1972's Agnes in the eastern U.S.

Other than Tropical Storm Erika, 2001's Tropical Storm Allison was the only other retiree never to attain hurricane status. Allison was a $9 billion storm and one of the worst floods of record in Houston.

All but two of the 30 costliest mainland U.S. tropical cyclones, including 2011's Irene and 2012's Sandy, have been retired. Every mainland U.S. tropical cyclone since 1953 that has claimed at least 38 lives has also had its name retired.

(MORE: Most Devastating U.S. Hurricanes | Hurricane Central)

Still, there are some storms that arguably should have been retired long ago.

"I'd still like to know why the name Alberto wasn't retired after the disaster in 1994," said senior director of weather communications, Stu Ostro (Wunderblog). Alberto's remnants produced massive flooding in eastern Alabama and western Georgia in early July 1994.

We also made a case in 2013 for retiring of Isaac, after its $2+ billion in damage in the U.S.

MORE ON WEATHER.COM: Atlantic Basin Retired Hurricanes and Tropical Storms