How is this storm different? Seems to be a normal hurricane which may happen this time of year.
They're all different. Some move fast with high winds and moderate surge (such as this one), some sit out there for weeks and make landfall as a Cat 1 storm, but have a Cat 5 surge. The angle that they arrive makes a difference also.
Probably the most significant thing about this one is that it's threatening a major population area that hasn't had a hurricane in 100 years.
