The annual Houston/Galveston National Weather Service Hurricane Workshop
continues to grow in attendance and notoriety. The event, the largest of its
kind in the nation, had more than 1,500 attendees in 2008 and increased
participation is expected this year, which could result in more than 2,500
attendees. The success of the event is due to its partnership with private and
public entities from its inception. The free Hurricane Preparedness event has
grown and has garnered national attention and recognition for its effort to
prepare residents before hurricane season through presentations, interactive
exhibits, hurricane season forecasting and more.
1990-1993
The workshop was originally sponsored by petro-chemical companies such as DuPont
and Shell. During this time, the event was primarily attended by the emergency
management and private industrial communities although it was open to the
general public. Following Hurricane Andrew in 1993, attendance soared to nearly
1,000 attendees.
1994-2004
In 1994, the East Harris County Manufacturers Association (EHCMA) came on as a
sponsor of the event and the City of Pasadena provided the Pasadena Convention
Center as a venue, free of charge. Event planners shifted their focus in 2004
and began to promote the event to the general public. The workshop was scheduled
on a weeknight and the annual event booklet was transformed into a hurricane
preparedness resource for southeast Texans. EHCMA earned a Corporate Award in
1997, at the National Hurricane Conference for their involvement in the
Hurricane Workshop.
2005-2010
In 2005, CenterPoint Energy became the corporate sponsor and underwriter of the
Hurricane Workshop. Other sponsors included the City of Houston, the National
Weather Service and active participants such as Harris County, Interfaith
Ministries for Greater Houston and the John C. Freeman Weather Museum.
By 2006, the workshop was moved to downtown Houston and hosted at the George R.
Brown Convention Center which was provided at no cost, courtesy of the City of
Houston. To reach out to families, a Kids Zone was introduced in 2007 by the
National Weather Museum. The event also began being held on Saturday.
In 2008, Radio Disney joined the Kids Zone and Public Service Awards from the
National Hurricane Conference were awarded to Stacey Williams Cox of CenterPoint
Energy and Corina Love (retired) of the City of Houston, for their contributions
to the Houston/Galveston National Weather Service Hurricane Workshop. Following Hurricane Ike, the 2009 Hurricane Workshop garnered the largest event attendance
since its inception, with approximately 3,000 attendees. Over the years, the award-winning event has grown in notoriety and continues to educate residents of the Houston/Galveston
area about hurricane preparedness. |
