Florida Braces for Hurricane Helene. Here’s What Meeting and Event Planners Need to Know.

 

Florida is bracing for Hurricane Helene, a Category 4 hurricane that could be the strongest hurricane to hit the U.S. in over a year. What started as a tropical storm in the Caribbean and Mexico has since surged to hurricane strength, with winds expected to reach at least 130 mph and storm surges up to 20 feet by the time it makes landfall in Florida Thursday afternoon.  

On Wednesday, President Joe Biden approved the request for a state of emergency in Florida and authorized the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to coordinate disaster relief efforts in the state. Other surrounding states in the Southeast such as North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia have also declared states of emergency amid reports that the storm could continue its destructive path north.  

Mandatory evacuations of numerous Florida coastal counties were also ordered on Wednesday, with many airports and universities closing throughout the duration of the storm. Tampa International Airport will suspend all commercial operations at 2 a.m. Thursday ahead of Helene’s arrival and will remain closed until damage assessments are completed, but it is anticipated to reopen Friday, according to NBC News.

What Hurricane Helene Means for Meetings and Events

But what does this mean for planners who may have meetings scheduled in areas that have now been forced to evacuate? In a previous story covering Hurricane Dorian back in 2019, meetings industry attorney Tyra Hillard said meeting planners should consider the following precautions:

1. Review the force majeure language in all of your contracts carefully. Does it allow you to terminate your contract without liability a certain number of days or weeks prior to your meeting due to an act of God? Or does it only allow a claim of force majeure if the disruption occurs on the day of your meeting?
2. If you have event cancellation insurance, contact your provider and discuss possible scenarios for either completely canceling your meeting or having a reduced number of attendees. Even if the storm has passed in the area your meeting is held, prospective attendees could still be dealing with its ramifications including flight delays or displacement.

“First, contact the venue or whoever you’re contracting with to see where they stand,” Hilliard advised in 2017 during Hurricane Harvey. “In cases like this, venues are usually pretty generous about letting people get out of contracts for force majeure, and then depending on what happens there, planners should then contact their lawyer. And their insurance provider is just as important to get in contact with as their lawyer, because they may have to use their event cancellation insurance.”

[Related: Coastal CVBs Brace for Hurricane Dorian: What Planners Need to Know]

Florida Hotels Offering ‘Distress Rates’

Many Florida hotel companies, including Rosen Hotels & Resorts in Orlando, are offering “distress rates” for residents in the 61 counties where Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency.

The initiative provides evacuees with a safe and affordable place to stay during the duration of the storm, helping to ensure the safety and well-being of any Florida residents caught in its path. More information about room rates can be found on Rosen Hotels’ website.  

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