White House sparks confusion by crediting Trump for quiet hurricane season

The White House has been branded 'crazy' after 'thanking' President Trump for a successfully quiet hurricane season.

While there are plenty of things the president has claimed credit for during his time in office, taking responsibility for the weather is certainly a new one.

And yet, that appears to be exactly what the White House has done, prompting plenty of raised eyebrows online.

"Thanking a politician for the weather is like thanking your landlord for the sunrise," one wrote on social media, as The official Rapid Response 47 account 'thanked' Trump for a quiet hurricane season so far this year.

"Dawg we are supposed to thank Trump for no hurricanes?" another questioned.

As a third wrote: "Ain't no way republicans are thanking Trump for controlling weather like what's the world gotten to?"

A fourth stated: "The absurdity of this post is absolutely off the charts. You've become a parody account that's suppose to be Rapid Response to America. This is crazy!"

No hurricanes have formed yet this year. (Getty Stock Images)

Despite thanking Trump, with no hurricanes expected for at least another week, they offered no explanation as to how he was responsible for it.

And experts have now stepped in, offering a realistic explanation as to why the season has seen so few hurricanes develop.

They actually attributed it to a powerful El Niño system that suppresses storm development.

Speaking with the Daily Express, Kristen Corbosiero, a University at Albany atmospheric science professor, said: "It's really staggering, just how inhospitable the Atlantic is to anything that could form a tropical cyclone right now.

The White House thanked Trump for the quiet season with no explanation as to how he was responsible. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

"Anything that tries to form is just getting this triple whammy."

How could the El Niño affect the US?

"For the most part, I don't see a monster El Niño event as anything the continental US has to be overly concerned with," says Patrick Rafter, assistant professor in the College of Marine Science at USF, speaking with TIME.

He notes that historically, the climate pattern has been linked to warmer-than-usual winters across North America, while the south tends to experience wetter and cooler conditions.

Risper Nyairo, assistant professor in the department of environmental studies at Davidson College, adds: "We will likely see less severe or less frequent hurricanes, but probably more severe tornadoes with severe storms."

Along the West Coast, in particular, researchers warned that El Niño could bring bigger waves and higher sea levels, while drier conditions in some areas could also increase the risk of wildfires.