Every year around this time, I find myself thinking about how much of what we do comes down to preparation. We talk a lot about safety culture at Tropical; one where safety isn’t a rule we follow but a habit we live. Hurricane season is where that culture gets tested, and it’s where preparation quietly becomes the thing that keeps our people safe.
We are now moving into the heart of the Atlantic hurricane season. It runs from June 1 through November 30, but the stretch ahead of us, from now through late October, is historically when storms are strongest and most frequent. Given where we operate, from Palm Beach to Halifax and throughout the Caribbean, there is very little of our network a major storm can’t reach. That isn’t meant to alarm anyone. It’s meant to remind us that being ready is part of the job, and part of taking care of one another.
Preparation starts at home. Before a storm is ever on the map, take the time to build a plan with the people you live with. Know your evacuation zone and the routes out of it. Put together a kit that can carry your household for several days: water, non-perishable food, medications, flashlights and batteries, phone chargers, cash, and copies of your important documents. Agree on how you’ll reach each other if the power goes out and phones become unreliable. It’s by far easier to do on a quiet afternoon in July than in the rush of a warning the day before landfall. If you take one thing from this piece, let it be that: don’t wait for the forecast to get your house in order.
That same principle carries into how we operate. When a storm threatens, schedules shift, cut-offs move up, port conditions change, and vessels may be rerouted or held. Those decisions aren’t made lightly, and they always put the safety of our crews, our vessels, and our cargo first. When the plan calls for us to slow down, secure, and wait out the weather, that’s exactly what we do, and doing it well is how we protect not only our own people but the customers and communities we are committed to.
Staying informed is a big part of staying safe. Keep an eye on the National Hurricane Center at hurricanes.gov for official forecasts and pay attention to your local emergency management guidance and to the updates that come through our own leaders and channels.
Finally, look out for one another. Check on the coworker who lives alone or the neighbor who may need help boarding up. The culture we’ve built at Tropical shows up most clearly in moments like these, when we raise concerns early, help without being asked, and make sure no one faces the storm on their own.
We’ve come through plenty of seasons before, and we’ll come through this one too, by preparing early, making good decisions under pressure, and taking care of each other the way this team always has.
Be prepared and stay safe out there.
Matthew King
Director of Health, Safety, Environmental, Facilities & Security
Tropical Shipping