SAN JUAN PUERO RICO – The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, which began in June and runs through November 30, is expected to be “above-average” again according to the latest forecast from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), with six to 10 storms expected to strengthen into hurricanes, and three to five becoming major hurricanes.
To prepare for this year’s potential onslaught of storms, the Caribbean District held a Hurricane Tabletop Training Exercise (TTX) on June 11, 2025, at Fort Buchanan. In attendance were district leaders, program managers and members of the Emergency Operations Management team. Also in attendance were leaders from across the Corps of Engineers South Atlantic Division providing technical support.
The Caribbean District Emergency Management Office brought together our Federal inter-agency partners to best posture our response and recovery capabilities in preparation for a future event.
FEMA and the National Weather Service were in attendance to brief on their roles and responsibilities within the National Response Framework and provide an overview of how the Caribbean District will be incorporated into regional hurricane planning, response and recovery operations throughout hurricane season.
“In the event of an emergency, the Caribbean District’s priorities are to help staff and personnel prepare for, respond to and recover from the event as quickly as possible so we are able to continue the Corps of Engineers’ mission to safely deliver quality public infrastructure projects on time and within budget in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands,” said Caribbean District Commander COL Charles L. Decker.
The TTX included a hypothetical hurricane making landfall in the U.S. Virgin Islands and along the East Coast, followed a few days later by a second major hurricane striking Puerto Rico. The exercise was designed to test the Caribbean District's newly drafted readiness and response emergency plan.
“The TTX was not a full-scale disaster drill, but rather a discussion-based exercise to practice and refine our emergency procedures before a real event occurs,” said Patricia Fontanet Rodríguez, Emergency Management chief for the Caribbean District. “The TTX allowed for discussions by key personnel assigned to emergency management roles as they simulated the actions they would take during a real-world crisis.”
The exercise creates a collaborative training environment for participants to validate plans, roles and responsibilities that would occur during an actual emergency and was a reminder to all members of the Caribbean District that it isn’t a matter of IF they will experience a hurricane; it’s a matter of WHEN a hurricane will hit the region.
“The exercise identified opportunities to improve our readiness posture and identify gaps and vulnerabilities that we can now address in advance of a real emergency,” Fontanet Rodriguez said.
The Caribbean District is part of the unified national response to all types of disasters, including public safety incidents and emergencies for the residents of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The Army Corps of Engineers assists the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA under Emergency Response Function #3 – Public Works and Engineering.