2026 Hurricane Season Preparedness Event

Registrations are open!

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Context

OCHA Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean (ROLAC) will convene the sixth edition of the Hurricane Season Preparedness Event (HSPE), as part of a broader regional effort to enhance preparedness ahead of the Atlantic hurricane season and other recurrent hazards. In this context, IFRC will host its Pre-Hurricane and Recurrent Hazards conference from 19 to 21 May. On 19 May, OCHA—together with IFRC, CEPREDENAC, CDEMA, UNDRR and ECHO—will jointly launch this series of preparedness events through a joint session, reinforcing regional coordination and joint readiness across partners. 

On 26 May, OCHA will host the 2026 Hurricane Season preparedness Event (HSPE), followed by CDEMA Pre-Hurricane Season Caribbean Development Partners Group for Disaster Management on 28 May.

Background

Building on the success of previous HSPEs and on the responses from the 2026 Regional Survey to Assess Capacity Building needs, this year the 2026 HSPE takes place in a context where hurricanes increasingly interact with other recurrent hazards and compounding risks (e.g., floods and landslides, ENSO), reinforcing the need for anticipatory, people-centred and coordinated preparedness grounded in timely risk information. Building lessons learned and ongoing preparedness workstreams, the sixth edition will prioritize practical readiness actions, usable tools and operational linkages across regional and country levels.

Objectives

  • Strengthening regional emergency preparedness and operational readiness of humanitarian and development actors and national counterparts ahead of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season.

  • Facilitate knowledge exchange, best practices, experience-sharing and innovations among humanitarian actors involved in emergency response preparedness and risk monitoring in Latin America and the Caribbean.

  • Promote collaboration and continuous learning opportunities between organizations and coordination mechanisms operating at regional and country levels.

  • Reinforce interoperability and complementarity across initiatives, including linkages with the IFRC Pre-Hurricane Conference and other recurrent hazards event, and key takeaways from the 19 May 2026 joint session with CEPREDENAC, CDEMA, UNDRR and ECHO.

Expected outcomes

  • Participants leave with a clearer understanding of the 2026 seasonal outlook, priority risks and recommended readiness actions for the region.

  • Improved awareness and practical use of key preparedness and response tools/services (risk monitoring, information management products, coordination mechanisms and operational support services).

  • Strengthened working relationships and coordination pathways among regional mechanisms (including CEPREDENAC and CDEMA), UN emergency response teams and partners.

  • Concrete follow-up actions identified for country and regional actors (e.g., coordination touchpoints, pre-positioning considerations, information products, training needs and technical clinics).

Target audience

The target audience encompasses a diverse array of stakeholders engaged in humanitarian action and emergency management in Latin America and the Caribbean, including representatives from national disaster management authorities; United Nations agencies and country teams; regional mechanisms; the Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement; non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and civil society; the donor community; and humanitarian practitioners operating at local, national and regional levels.

Methodology

HSPE 2026 will be held in a hybrid format on 26 May 2026 (Panama time, GMT-5). The programme will combine plenary discussions with interactive segments (e.g., moderated conversations and technical clinics) to promote exchange and engagement. Sessions are expected to last approximately 45–60 minutes, depending on the topic. Ahead of HSPE, participants will have the opportunity to join related regional preparedness events, including IFRC PreHurricane and recurrent hazard conference (19–21 May) and CEPREDENAC preparedness event (11–15 May). Please refer to the “Connection Links” section for details.

Simultaneous interpretation will be available English to Spanish / Spanish to English. Event materials (including presentations and relevant references) will be shared through Relief Web Response, the central information hub for emergency response preparedness, globally. 

To strengthen coherence across the regional preparedness ecosystem, HSPE 2026 will integrate a joint session organize with IFRC, CEPREDENAC, CDEMA, UNDRR & ECHO on 19 may, as part of the annual IFRC Pre Hurricane Conference.

Connection Links

Tuesday 19 May: Joint launch event at the Pre Hurricane and Recurrent Hazards Conference 

Wednesday 20 May: Pre Hurricane and Recurrent Hazards Conference

Thursday 21 May: Pre Hurricane and Recurrent Hazards Conference

Tuesday 26 May: 2026 HSPE Agenda

Thursday 28 May 2026: Pre-Hurricane Season Caribbean Development Partners Group for Disaster Management meeting

Contact

For comments and suggestions related to HSPE 2026, please contact: Himshem Him (himh@un.org) & Fernando López (fernando.lopezr@un.org)