Blame Hurricane Irene for the Great Pumpkin Shortage of 2011.

The northeast may be pressed for Jack-O-Lanterns this Halloween.  Farmers' pumpkin patches were wiped out by Irene.  Wholesale prices have doubled in upstate New York; some farmers are trying to import pumpkins from other parts of the U.S. to make up for the shortfall.

Pumpkins typically have to be ready to ship by mid-September, because demand plummets after Halloween.

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Cooling towers for Units 4 and 3 are seen at Plant Vogtle, operated by Georgia Power Co., in east Georgia's Burke County near Waynesboro, on Wednesday, May 29, 2024. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC