That's not what he's talking about. HHN started in October of 1991, that's when it was "born". In October of 1992, even though it was the second event, it was only a year old. It's just like when a baby is born, they're not a year old until their first birthday, which is a year after they were born.
So yes, 20 years of fear can be misleading. But I don't think it's that big of a deal.