Animation of forecast wind speed and directions taken from PDC’s DisasterAWARE Pro app.
Source: Pacific Disaster Center (PDC)
Although NOAA predicts a less active season for the Central and Eastern Pacific, even a single storm can wield catastrophic loss of life and damage to infrastructure, according to experts at the Pacific Disaster Center (PDC).
In response, PDC is working closely with global and regional partners to strengthen early warning and empower decision-makers with the best scientific tools, technologies, and information to build disaster resilience and save lives.
“For nearly three decades, the PDC has worked side by side with partners around the world to strengthen hurricane preparedness and deliver early warnings and other critical information that saves lives.
As we face another potentially active season in the Atlantic basin, our mission remains the same: to equip decision-makers with the most advanced science, tools, and information available—so they can act faster, plan smarter, and protect communities before disaster strikes. Even a single storm can be devastating, which is why preparedness, and building regional resilience and capabilities, must remain a key focus,” said Glenn James, PDC Senior Weather Specialist
“As we face another potentially active season in the Atlantic basin, our mission remains the same: to equip decision makers with the most advanced science, tools, and information available.”
Advanced decision support with DisasterAWARE 9.0
PDC recently launched DisasterAWARE Pro 9.0, the latest version of its globally recognized disaster risk intelligence platform used by disaster managers and humanitarian assistance practitioners worldwide. This powerful upgrade, released April 29, delivers major enhancements to real-time situational awareness and operational readiness, including:
- Integrated Situational Awareness and Decision Support: Real-time early warning from multiple authoritative sources and visualized risk information for faster, more informed responses.
- Advanced Impact Analytics: Providing accurate estimates of impacts to population and critical infrastructure within minutes, including a demographic breakdown of exposure, capital exposure estimates, and likely humanitarian needs.
- Dynamic Forecast Layers: Integrated data about wind speed and direction, precipitation, and more.
- Supply Chain Risk Management: Critical asset protection with personalized Smart Alert notifications and reporting about critical infrastructure, personnel, and other assets in the supply chain exposed to risks.
- Tailored Mapping Tools: Enhanced visuals of tropical cyclone paths, population, risk data, critical infrastructure, and impact zones.
- Hyperlocal Data: New and expanded street-level insights into critical infrastructure and routes.
These newly enhanced tools and expanded datasets are actively supporting U.S. national partners and partners around the globe ahead of hurricane season, empowering them to act swiftly, plan effectively, and ultimately save lives.
New wind speed and direction forecast animation.
Source: PDC’s DisasterAWARE Pro App
New population density data resamples with each zoomed area.
Hyperlocal critical infrastructure data.
Strengthening regional preparedness and resilience through partner capacity enhancement
Thirty-five nations have collaborated with PDC to complete detailed, localized risk and preparedness assessments to guide resilience-building priorities and mitigation efforts.
Source: PDC
PDC’s Senior Advisor Steve Recca and CEPREDENAC Executive Secretary Adherbal De La Rosa at the First Regional Coordination Meeting organized by the Center for Coordination for the Prevention of Natural Disasters in Central America (CEPREDENAC).
Source: PDC
Latin America
On May 7–8, PDC joined the First Regional Coordination Meeting organized by the Center for Coordination for the Prevention of Natural Disasters in Central America (CEPREDENAC) and hosted by Dominican Republic Civil Defense in Santo Domingo. The event convened regional and international disaster management leaders to strengthen preparedness and response to evolving storm scenarios ahead of the 2025 hurricane season. The focus included deepening cooperation, improving risk understanding and advancing disaster resilience across Central America.
Recent engagements also included separate meetings with El Salvador’s national disaster office (Dirección General de Protección Civil) and the Honduras Comisión Permanente de Contingencias (COPECO) to advance Risk Reduction and Advanced Analytics projects underway in partnership with PDC. To date, more than 35 national risk and preparedness assessments have been completed with partner nations around the world through PDC’s National Disaster Preparedness Baseline Assessment (NDPBA) program. Thirteen assessments have been completed in Latin America alone since 2015, while three new assessments are planned for 2025 and 2026.
As part of the assessment program, PDC is also collaborating closely with national partners to support implementation of assessment recommendations to strengthen capabilities. Findings from these assessments are actively used by national decision makers and partners to guide strategic resource prioritization and improve investments designed to mitigate impacts from hurricanes and other hazards.
Honduras and PDC kick off Risk Reduction and Advanced Analytics project to focus investment and capacity building efforts.
Source: PDC
Tradewinds 2025 exercise.
Source: U.S. Army South
The Caribbean
As one of the most heavily affected regions in the world for tropical cyclone losses year after year, the Caribbean has also been ramping up preparations for the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, which is forecast to be above-normal with 13-19 named storms forecast. Approximately six to ten named storms are anticipated to become hurricanes an estimate three to five will become major hurricanes (Category 3 or higher). NOAA has a 70% confidence in these estimates.
In preparation for these anticipated events and the particularly devastating impacts they have on small island nations, PDC is supporting efforts throughout the region to build resilience, playing a key role in the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA)’s Exercise Synergy, held virtually in partnership with U.S. Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM) and multiple regional stakeholders on April 14, 2025.
The exercise, which simulated a Category 4 hurricane impacting Turks and Caicos and The Bahamas, focused on improving processes in logistics, communications, and regional mutual aid agreements in preparation for the upcoming hurricane season. Over 20 international organizations participated, including UNOCHA, WFP, U.S. agencies, and public-private partners. PDC advanced science and technical support included:
• Decision-support products
• Risk and vulnerability assessments
• Infrastructure impact analytics
Tradewinds 25
Further strengthening regional security and response readiness ahead of hurricane season, PDC supported the 40th iteration of exercise TRADEWINDS 25 (April 26–May 8), which united 26 nations in promoting security and cooperation across the Western Hemisphere. DisasterAWARE served as the Common Operating Picture (COP), enhancing collaboration between civilian and military partners and aligning tools and procedures currently leveraged by National Disaster Management Organizations (NDMOs).
PDC-generated exercise Event Brief in support of CDEMA’s 2025 Exercise Synergy.
PDC is further amplifying efforts to bolster readiness throughout the Caribbean region through its national risk and preparedness assessments, with four underway or planned in 2025 and 2026. A total of eight assessments have already been completed by PDC within the Caribbean since 2015.
Exercising military-civil preparedness
Honduran military, COPECO, national police and partners outline initial response capabilities and respond to exercise injects
Source: PDC
Jaguar Sentinel
In collaboration with U.S. Southern Command’s (USSOUTHCOM) forward-deployed Joint Task Force-Bravo (JTF-B), PDC is supporting the Jaguar Sentinel exercise series—formerly known as Sentinel Watch—to enhance hurricane preparedness and all-hazard response capacity across Central America and the Caribbean. These subject matter exchanges are built around realistic disaster scenarios and are designed to enhance interoperability between national militaries and NDMOs.
Held in El Salvador, Honduras, and the Dominican Republic, with Panama slated for the next month, the exercises bring together key decision makers for planning and coordination across borders. PDC has provided direct support through:
- Exercise Event Briefs to kick off the scenario
- Advanced analytics
- Critical infrastructure analyses
PDC’s training and exercises program supports full-spectrum capabilities enhancements, making it possible for partners to train as they would respond in the real world. The Center’s DisasterAWARE Exercise platform provides the world’s largest collection of scientifically verified disaster data available exclusively through PDC—with real-time hazard analytics to guide fast and effective decisions and shared situational awareness tools for a common operational picture.
Along with the training and exercises program, PDC provides self-paced DisasterAWARE training online, making it possible for practitioners to boost and refresh skills from anywhere around the world with internet access.
A whole-of -society approach to risk reduction
History has repeatedly shown that just one significant hurricane can cause catastrophic damage and loss. That’s why the Pacific Disaster Center (PDC), together with its trusted partners, continues to lay the groundwork for stronger resilience, enhanced preparedness, and faster, more informed response. In addition to the scientific and technological support provided to decision makers and disaster management practitioners, PDC provides tools for the public to remain safe anywhere around the world through its Disaster Alert mobile app.
Disaster Alert is free for anyone to download and offers real-time early warning about 28 different types of natural and man made hazards as they are happening around the world. The app is designed to ensure communities understand disaster risks and are better equipped to face any hazard that lies ahead.
Get quarterly updates about our innovations and projects!
