Miami ? Despite alarming predictions, the U.S. came through a second straight hurricane season virtually unscathed, raising fears among emergency planners that they will be fighting public apathy and overconfidence when they warn people to prepare for next year.

Friday marks the official close of the Atlantic season, so unless a storm forms in the next few days, only one hurricane – and a minor one at that – will have hit the U.S. during the June-to-November period. Mexico and Central America, however, were struck by a record two top-scale Category 5 storms.

The preliminary total for the season: 14 named storms, six of them hurricanes, two of them major.

That was less activity than the government predicted before the season started, and stands in stark contrast to 2004 and 2005, when the U.S. was hit by one devastating storm after another, including Hurricane Katrina.

However, forecasters and emergency managers warned that one result of the good year for the country may be increased skepticism when they urge people to stock up on food and draw up their hurricane evacuation plans for next year.

“Now that we’ve gone a couple of years without major hurricanes, will the public be more apathetic before the next hurricane season? The answer is absolutely,” said Craig Fugate, director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management. “The further we get away from these types of events … the more complacent people become, and that’s the challenge we have to continue to fight.”

The season’s 14 named storms were on the low end of the 13 to 17 government scientists predicted. The six hurricanes didn’t reach the seven to 10 forecast. The two major hurricanes were also below the three to five predicted.