Fort Bend County Reinforces Emergency Preparedness with Tabletop Exercise as Tropical System Eyes Gulf
As Southeast Texas enters week six of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, Fort Bend County leaders are doubling down on preparedness. Today, County Judge KP George convened municipal officials, emergency coordinators, and regional partners at the Fort Bend County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) for a high-level tabletop exercise designed to sharpen disaster response and reinforce interagency coordination.
The training, hosted inside the county’s state-of-the-art EOC, comes amid new weather alerts from the National Weather Service, which is tracking a tropical disturbance currently moving over Florida and expected to enter the Gulf of Mexico by midweek.
“Our goal is always to be proactive, not reactive. Today’s session is proof that we are putting that principle into action,” said Judge George.
Today’s event was sponsored by AshBritt, a national disaster logistics and recovery firm that has partnered with Fort Bend County during past hurricane seasons.
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Tropical System Could Affect SE Texas Later This Week
According to the National Weather Service’s briefing this morning, forecasters are monitoring a slowly organizing system that could develop into a tropical depression once it reaches the warm waters of the Gulf.
- A 40% chance of development is currently forecast by the National Hurricane Center.
- Regardless of formation, the system is expected to bring a surge of tropical moisture, elevating the risk of heavy rainfall, flash flooding, and thunderstorms in the Houston area, including Fort Bend County, by Friday or Saturday.
- Forecast confidence is expected to improve after Hurricane Reconnaissance Aircraft investigate the system as early as today or Wednesday.
While the exact intensity and track of the system remain uncertain, forecasters emphasize that now is the time for heightened awareness. Even if the system does not develop into a named storm, it is still likely to bring tropical downpours and an elevated risk of flooding to Southeast Texas by the end of the week.
A County Prepared: Investments Paying Off in Real Time
Today’s tabletop exercise is just the latest in a long series of efforts by Fort Bend County to ensure it can respond rapidly and efficiently when disaster strikes.
Emergency Operations Center: Built for Today’s Threats
In June 2022, the county celebrated the grand opening of its 24,245 sq. ft. Emergency Operations Center, a hardened facility built to withstand 150 mph winds and equipped with redundant power systems, advanced communications tools, and a dedicated Joint Information Center. Final construction wrapped in early 2023.
Real-World Drills & Flood Scenario Planning
In January 2023, Fort Bend officials ran a full-scale flood simulation, modeling a 500-year flood event along the Brazos River. The scenario tested everything from public messaging to levee coordination, medical response, and EOC logistics—mirroring what the current tropical system could bring.
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MOUs, Unified Command, and Tactical Coordination
The county has also advanced efforts to formalize Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) between fire, police, EMS, and emergency management entities, which were revisited and refined during today’s exercise. These agreements pave the way for Multi-Agency Coordination (MAC) Group meetings and joint decision-making—critical in fast-moving hurricane scenarios.
Dispatch Upgrades & New Training Facility
- Fort Bend’s 911 system handled 170,000 calls in 2024, with a 95% rapid-answer rate.
- A new $40 million training and communications facility broke ground in early 2024, set to open by December 2025. It will house next-gen training tools for both dispatch and disaster response.
EMS Enhancements and Public Health Responses
Fort Bend EMS now deploys 16 Mobile Intensive Care Units daily, outfitted with advanced cardiac monitors and CPR-assist technology. The county also demonstrated swift action earlier this month when it launched targeted spraying after detecting its first West Nile virus–positive mosquito of 2025.
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Stay Informed and Be Ready
With a tropical system already forming in the Gulf, emergency officials urge residents to:
- Check their emergency kits and evacuation plans now
- Monitor the National Weather Service, Fort Bend County, and local news for updates
- Register for county emergency alerts and flood warnings
“Preparedness is not just an agency priority—it’s a community responsibility,” said Judge George. “What we do today determines how quickly we recover tomorrow.”
For the latest storm updates, visit weather.gov/hgx or follow Fort Bend County Office of Emergency Management on social media.
To learn more about Fort Bend’s emergency response capabilities, stay tuned with My Neighborhood News for continuing local coverage throughout hurricane season.
Tiffany Krenek has been on the My Neighborhood News team since August 2021. She is passionate about curating and sharing content that enriches the lives of our readers in a personal, meaningful way. A loving mother and wife, Tiffany and her family live in the West Houston/Cypress region.
