After more than four decades of tracking storms, the director of the National Hurricane Center, Bill Read is saying goodbye. 

Read announced his plans for retirement early last week but spoke to the media for the first time since the announcement on Thursday morning. 

"Day in and day out, the interaction I have with the folks here is what I will miss the most," Read said. 

Read started in the Navy in 1971, tracking storms. He served on the Navy Hurricane Hunters group. He moved on the Houston-Galveston office of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, where he was the program leader for several severe storms and flash floods. 

After decades in Teaxas, he eventually landed in South Florida. Read said that with just four months away from the start of hurricane season on June 1, he felt this was the best time to announce his plans for retirement. 

“I think it would be easier for the new person to come in at the start of the season, work a season then understand what we do, then coordinate everything," Read said. 

After years in the field of meteorology, Read feels he's accomplished almost everything he set out to do. As for the future of tracking down the next dangerous storm, Read said it will be left up to the evolution of technology. 

NOAA hopes to have Reed's replacement on staff by June. 

Local 10 hurricane expert Max Mayfield, another former director of the National Hurricane Center, said he thinks it “will be a challenge” to fill the position by June 1.