Department of Emergency Management Tests Evacuation Coordination Plans Ahead of the 2026 Atlantic Hurricane Season
OCEAN CITY, Md. (May 27, 2026) — Yesterday, the Maryland Department of Emergency Management (MDEM) hosted a multi-state tabletop exercise focused on evacuation coordination. Representatives from the Delaware Emergency Management Agency, Virginia Department of Emergency Management, and local governments from the Delmarva Peninsula as well as the Baltimore region participated in the exercise held in Ocean City ahead of the 2026 hurricane season.
The exercise scenario was based on a Category 3 hurricane making direct landfall on the peninsula. While the scenario is unlikely, using extreme situations to stress response protocols can assist local officials in identifying critical gaps in planning and capabilities ahead of the emergency. The Atlantic hurricane season begins June 1 and goes through November 30 each year.
“Interagency planning and exercises like the Delmarva Regional Evacuation Coordination effort are foundational work of emergency management. We’re grateful to Maryland’s local jurisdictions, Delaware, and Virginia, who dedicated the time to work with us to update plans and participate in this exercise,” Russell Strickland, Secretary of the Department of Emergency Management said after the tabletop concluded Tuesday.
During the tabletop exercise, local emergency managers and state officials discussed the logistics and practicality of protective actions like evacuations or sheltering options, and assessed how different communities would respond. They also reviewed the available resources each community has to address any gaps ahead of hurricane season.
“Planning and practicing for a full Delmarva evacuation helps make sure we’re ready to support our local communities when a major disaster happens,” Brian LeCates, Talbot County Director of Emergency Services said. “These exercises give us a chance to work through challenges ahead of time with our local, state, and federal partners across the Delmarva, so we can help keep people safe, informed, and connected when it matters most.”
MDEM will also host a functional exercise which will include the activation of the State Emergency Operations Center later in June. Local and state leaders across the Delmarva region will build on the tabletop exercise and assess capabilities across critical sectors that could be impacted including transportation, public safety, public health and medical needs, communications, and sheltering. The functional exercise will evaluate the need for additional services and resources to be deployed if any of the services are activated.
The plan update, tabletop and functional exercises were funded by FEMA’s Regional Catastrophic Preparedness Grant Program (RCPGP). The competitive grant program plays an important role in the implementation of the National Preparedness System. RCPGP funding supports the building of core capabilities essential to achieving the goal of a secure and resilient nation by providing resources to close known capability gaps in Housing and Logistics and Supply Chain Management, encouraging innovative regional solutions to issues related to catastrophic incidents, and building on existing regional efforts.
“Programs like the Regional Catastrophic Preparedness Grant Program are essential because they support planning, training, and exercises like this,” Secretary Strickland said. “These efforts allow us to strengthen coordination, identify gaps, and improve our ability to support communities before a real-world emergency occurs in any of our jurisdictions.”
Marylanders are encouraged to install the MdReady WebApp, which gives instant access to a wide array of emergency notifications and preparedness information to residents and visitors alike. To install the new WebApp, users can visit MdReady.maryland.gov and follow the prompt to easily add the MdReady shortcut to a mobile device home screen, or to sign up for local text alerts.
For more information, residents can also go to MDEM’s website at mdem.maryland.gov, and follow MDEM’s social media feeds X (Twitter) (@MDMEMA), Facebook (facebook.com/MDMEMA), Linkedin (linkedin.com/company/maryland-department-of-emergency-management), Threads (threads.net/@mdmema) and Bluesky (@mdmema.bsky.social).
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