Commercial

What Hurricane Rachel Taught Us in Lázaro Cárdenas

By Fernando Loría — Chief Executive Officer, Hurricane Solution · October 6, 2026

Rachel passed off the coast of Michoacán on September 28 and 29 as a tropical storm, more than 400 km (250 miles) south of Lázaro Cárdenas, and by Wednesday the 30th it was already about 570 km west and moving away. It never touched the Michoacán coast, and Lázaro Cárdenas wasn't even inside the warning area. Even so, Mexico's Navy (SEMAR) closed the port to all vessels.

For a business in a port city, that alone is an event with a cost. I want to explain why, and what I would do with what Rachel left behind, especially from the perspective of warehouses, hotels, restaurants and offices.

In this article I cover:

Why the storm that never arrives can cost a business more than it seems.
How the failure of a single large door can end with the loss of the roof.
How to organize your staff so deployment doesn't depend on improvisation.
What to check once the storm has passed.

What happened in Michoacán

Based on the data as of September 30:

The National Hurricane Center placed Rachel about 570 km west of Lázaro Cárdenas, as a Category 1 hurricane moving northwest.
The tropical storm warning began at Punta San Telmo, northwest of the port.
SEMAR closed navigation at Lázaro Cárdenas and Zihuatanejo to all vessels because of the swells.
Mexico's National Meteorological Service (SMN) forecast 75 to 150 mm (3 to 6 inches) of rain for the Michoacán coast, gusts of 50 to 70 km/h (31 to 43 mph) in the western part of the state, and waves of 4 to 6 meters (13 to 20 ft).
A week earlier, swells from Polo hit Playa Azul and, according to available reports, damaged at least nine homes.

The storm that never arrives still costs you

In a tourist town, a storm that passes far offshore is measured in wet hotel rooms. In Lázaro Cárdenas, one of the most important ports in the country, the cost is spread across the entire chain:

With the port closed, ships wait offshore and containers don't move.
Carriers reschedule, and sometimes staff can't make it in.
Goods get wet in warehouses that don't seal properly against wind-driven rain.
When the port reopens, everyone tries to make up lost time at once, and the business with a jammed rolling steel door or an office without power loses its place in line.

Add to that the fact that every time a storm is announced, protecting warehouses and offices has to be improvised, two or three times a season, and the accumulated cost of the storms that never arrive can exceed that of a single event with visible damage. That's why I see hurricane protection for a port business as part of its business continuity plan, not just as building maintenance.

A large door and the roof are the same problem

This is the technical concept I most want every owner of a warehouse or commercial building to understand.

A closed building resists wind like a box. Pressure pushes on the exposed face and creates suction on the roof and sides, but the interior stays relatively stable. When a large opening on the exposed side gives way, the wind gets in and pressurizes the interior. That pressure pushes the roof outward at the same time the outside wind is pulling on it, and the two forces add up.

In warehouses and workshops, the openings at greatest risk are usually the ones people least think of as part of the building envelope:

Rolling steel doors.
Loading dock doors.
Workshop gates.
Glass facades on offices and showrooms.

That's why, when we assess a warehouse, we start with the largest door on the side that takes the wind. If that door can't be reinforced or protected in under an hour, that's the first project, even if the building has plenty of other windows.

Two warehouses, same forecast

To illustrate, here is a common pattern in port areas (an illustrative case, no names):

Two neighboring warehouses with the same construction: a metal building, rolling steel doors in front and offices with a glass facade.
Both get word of a storm that will pass well offshore, bringing rain and gusts.
The first has a written plan. The person in charge activates the readiness phase, the team reinforces the doors on the exposed side, lifts goods off the floor, protects the offices and releases staff by mid-afternoon.
The second decides to wait. A gust bends the track of a door that hadn't been secured. The door doesn't break, but it opens just enough for wind-driven water to get in and soak several pallets.
The next day, the first warehouse opens on time. At the second, the door won't close, staff spend the morning drying merchandise and a customer receives their order two days late.

The storm hit both warehouses with the same force; the difference was the plan, and having protected the right opening first.

Deployment time as a performance metric

Businesses measure productivity, inventory and delivery times, but almost none of them know how long it takes to protect their building. As long as it isn't measured, it's hard to improve it or hold anyone to it.

A deployment plan for a coastal business should include:

One person in charge, with a backup, who has the authority to activate the plan without waiting for anyone.
Clear triggers: readiness when there's an active storm that could affect the area, deployment under a watch or warning, and full closure before tropical-storm-force winds arrive.
Teams assigned by area, with times measured in a drill at least once a year.
A written manual and training, because staff turns over. That's why we deliver both with every installation we do.
A cutoff time for releasing staff, so they have time to take care of their families.

Plywood or a pre-engineered system

Plywood is the most common response on the Michoacán coast when a storm is announced, and it's better than nothing. But it should be judged by the same criteria as any other investment:

Strength: plywood carries no certification and depends on how it's installed. A pre-engineered system is tested to a standard and has a test report number.
Availability: plywood sells out at hardware stores with every warning. The system is stored on site and made to measure.
Time: protecting a warehouse with plywood can take days. With a system and trained staff, it takes hours.
Large openings: securing plywood over a rolling steel door or a loading dock is very difficult. Hurricane fabrics are designed for large spans.
Staff safety: wood panels are heavy and are handled at height. Our fabrics weigh about 1 kg per 3 m² (about 2.2 lb per 32 sq ft).

For a small house with few windows, properly installed plywood can be a reasonable temporary solution. For a business with large openings and several threats per season, a pre-engineered system solves the problem that actually decides the outcome, which is time.

Checklist: questions for your team or your provider

What is the largest opening on the exposed side of our building, and how do we protect it?
How long did it take us to protect the whole building last time? Did anyone measure it?
Who activates the plan if the person in charge isn't there?
Are goods and sensitive equipment sitting at floor level?
What happens to our operation the day the port reopens?
If we install a system, what impact level is it certified for, and who can verify the test report?

After the storm

Once the storm has passed, this is the order in which I would inspect:

Safety: downed power lines and water near electrical panels.
Anchors and hardware, looking for loose, bent or corroded parts.
Rolling steel doors and loading dock doors, including their tracks and locks.
Seals and frames, checking walls and floors for signs of water intrusion.
Roofs and downspouts, looking for lifted roof panels or clogged drains.
Dated photos of everything for the insurance claim.

In summary

Rachel never touched Michoacán, but the port of Lázaro Cárdenas closed, and there was rain and waves of up to 6 meters.
In a port city, the cost of a storm that never arrives is spread across the entire logistics chain.
The failure of a rolling steel door or loading dock door can pressurize the building and compromise the roof.
Measuring deployment time is how you turn protection into something you can manage.
For businesses with large openings, a pre-engineered system solves the time problem better than plywood.

What I would do this week in Lázaro Cárdenas is identify the largest door on the exposed side, measure how long it takes the team to protect it, and put in writing who activates the plan. With those three things settled, you face the next storm with a process instead of improvisation.