This month marked the beginning of hurricane season, which will continue through November, forcing South Florida planners to tweak their logistical strategies and consider additional natural elements like high humidity, lightning, and mosquitoes when planning upcoming events. With the daily late-afternoon showers that accompany the rainy season, planners continue to push their events further into the winter and spring months to avoid the last-minute venue changes and costs incurred with a rain plan.
“I’ve noticed [event] season starting later each year as hurricane threats seem to continue later into the fall,” said Susan Holtzman, president of Eventures Special Event Production, which specializes in planning nonprofit events.
Jennifer Diliz, director of annual giving and special events at the YMCA of Greater Miami, only plans events for September through May, citing the increasingly unpleasant heat and rain that begins in June as a deterrent for her target donors. "A lot of people are away in the summer, so we just try to stick to the [event] season," said Diliz. "Our gala is usually in October [when the] weather is nicer and we don’t have to worry about a hurricane." Since Diliz has other events beginning in September, her event budgets are increased by 5 to 10 percent through November to accommodate a rain plan.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, this season is expected to be near normal, with a 70 percent chance of nine to 14 named storms. But planners must also account for lightning threats in the average afternoon showers since South Florida is recognized as the lightning capital of the United States, with an average of nine deaths per year, according to The Miami Herald. (The first of this season happened on June 8 in Coral Springs.)
Following two devastating hurricanes in 2004, the state began offering Cover Your Event Insurance for meetings and conferences scheduled for August through October in an effort to show planners that Florida is still a safe destination during hurricane season. The complimentary insurance covers costs—ranging from $100,000 to $200,000—incurred as a result of needing to reschedule or cancel a group event due to a named hurricane.
Beyond the threat of a potential hurricane, planners must account for other atmospheric elements like intense humidity, flash rains, and mosquitoes after a storm, all of which affect outdoor events. “Mosquitoes are worst at dawn and dusk, so if you have an event at night you need to make sure it starts later than you normally would as they seem to go away after the sun is down,” said Mona Meretsky, president of corporate event planning company Comcor Event and Meeting Production. Meretsky added that her next event isn’t scheduled until fall and that business drops by nearly 60 percent in summer.
Not all groups are deterred by the weather, however. The University of Miami annually holds an average off six outdoor events during the rainy season, each with a budget increased by 10 percent compared to the winter months. “Ideally [the university] likes to do our events outside on the campus, so [because] a full rain plan is needed, it costs more overall,” said Anita Mattner, the university's executive director for events management and special projects, who uses more tenting, additional generators for air conditioning, and has university-branded umbrellas on hand for guests during the events.
