Puerto Morelos’ Hurricane Evacuation Plan for Tourists

Puerto Morelos, Quintana Roo — Puerto Morelos Mayor Blanca Merari Tziu Muñoz announced that the municipality has finalized its evacuation plan for tourists in the event of a hurricane during the 2025 storm season. The plan prioritizes safeguarding lives and property while ensuring the safety of visitors, who are vital to the local economy.

Evacuation Strategy for Coastal Hotels

The mayor noted that Puerto Morelos has 73 hotels with nearly 8,000 rooms. Of these, 21 hotels must submit information about their designated shelters—primarily located in Cancún and Playa del Carmen—to Civil Protection authorities. All hotels maintain communication with the municipal Civil Protection Coordination office and have submitted evacuation plans to ensure an orderly process if needed.

Mayor Tziu Muñoz emphasized that while the 2025 Special Program for Civil Protection During Rain and Tropical Cyclone Season focuses on prevention, it also includes an emergency relief phase for extreme situations.

Criteria for Evacuation

Irma Ávila Méndez, Civil Protection Coordinator, explained that hotels along the beachfront are exposed to hazards such as storm surges—a rise in sea level caused by cyclonic and astronomical tides—as well as intense winds and mangrove conditions.

Evacuations will be triggered if the area is threatened by hurricanes of Category 3, 4, or 5, defined by winds reaching at least 178 km/h (111 mph). Approximately 4,500 guests from coastal hotels would be relocated to shelters in Cancún and Playa del Carmen.

Evacuation Routes and Timing

Evacuations will begin under a yellow alert, accounting for the limited road access in the coastal zone. Smaller beachfront hotels without alternate shelters will start evacuations under a green alert.

Three designated exit routes will lead to the federal highway:

1. José María Morelos Avenue (serving the Old Town area)
2. Crococun Access
3. Petempich Access

These routes will operate as one-way exits, with entry to the beach zone restricted during evacuations.

Specific Evacuation Zones:

• South coastal area to Francisco I. Madero Street: Evacuated via José María Morelos Avenue.
• Hotels between Desiré Pearl and Condominios Lindos: Evacuated via Crococun Access.
• Hotels from Hyatt Ziva to Villa Tiburón: Evacuated via Bahía Petempich Access.

Preparedness Training

As part of hurricane preparedness efforts, hotel staff in Puerto Morelos received training in collaboration with the Cancún, Puerto Morelos, and Isla Mujeres Hotel Association.

The plan ensures a coordinated response to protect both residents and tourists during the 2025 hurricane season.