Weather expert Dr. William Gray has reduced the number of hurricanes he had predicted for the 1993 season because of continued dry African weather.

But he is still forecasting two severe hurricanes to hit the Atlantic-Caribbean area. That number is statistically just below average.

Dr. Gray's latest forecast also contains a dire warning for Americans living in coastal areas.

In the next few decades, he predicted, America will see hurricane destruction "as never before''.

The Colorado State University professor this month changed his forecast to include six instead of seven hurricanes, and ten named tropical storms.

"Based on the primary factors we use, it looks like this season is shaping up much like we said it would in June, but the continued dry conditions in the Sahel region in Africa make us believe we will see somewhat less activity than we forecast earlier,'' Dr. Gray said in his updated forecast.

There have been three named storms this season, which ends November 30. Also in the forecast, he cautions that a lull in major land falling hurricane activity should not be expected to indefinitely continue.

"A return of increased major landfalling hurricane activity is to be expected in the next few decades. When this happens, because of the large coastal development during the last 25-30 years, the US will see hurricane destruction as never before experienced.'' Dr. Gray said research on the causes and likely time frame for the change-over was desperately needed.

"This is a real and likely more of an immediate natural threat for the US than that of earthquakes, tornadoes or greenhouse gas warming,'' he warned.

Dr. Gray bases his forecasts on the following factors: direction of equatorial stratospheric winds, rainfall, temperature and pressure readings in the Sahel Region, barometric pressure, upper level winds in the Caribbean and the strength or weakness of the warm-water pattern known as El Nino off the coast of Peru.