Trade show organizer Fortem International produces more than 40 events worldwide each year across the tech, e-commerce, retail and hospitality sectors. Among its largest and most specialized offerings is a show dedicated to emergency management professionals: Disasters Expo USA.
Launched in Miami in 2021 originally under the name “The Natural Disasters Expo,” the event has quickly become a key gathering for industry experts and responders. It has always taken place at the Miami Beach Convention Center, requiring participants to register and verify their professional role before purchasing a general admission pass, which typically costs about $119 and for full two-day access.
The expo is now gearing up for its sixth edition, scheduled for March 4-5, 2026, once again outside of Florida’s hurricane season. Fortem International Marketing Manager Molly Schwerdt, said the event is expecting 5,500 attendees, which would represent a 14.5% year-over-year increase if the projection holds.
The exhibitor count, however, is expected to remain steady at 300, the majority of which are solution providers. They will occupy just over 16,000 square feet of the 1.4 million-square-foot Miami Beach Convention Center—located in a state that ranks sixth nationwide for natural disasters, according to the World Population Review. Exhibiting attendees will also have access to an exclusive night-one networking reception.
A Time of Firsts
Last month, Fortem International expanded Disasters Expo USA to Houston for the first time. In previous years, its winter edition had been held in California. Hosting the event in Texas—the state with the most natural disasters, per the World Population Review—came with another first, co-location with The Resilient City Expo.
The Resilient City Expo which, as its name suggests, focuses on sustainable development and climate-risk mitigation, will now also be co-located with the flagship Miami event come 2026 for the first time. This pairing will “bring a new demographic to the show, allowing people to explore the before, during and after of a disaster more in depth,” Schwerdt said.
What to Expect On-Site
Before the show even begins, a VIP breakfast event on the morning of March 4 will allow attendees to get acquainted with one another.
Though Schwerdt declined to preview specific speakers, she promised that the 2026 program represents “our strongest lineup to date.” Speakers typically join via referrals from past participants or through targeted outreach on LinkedIn as Schwerdt and her team research emerging voices in the field.
In all, attendees can expect 28 main-stage sessions across keynotes and panel discussions, plus an additional 42 “Seminar Sessions” offering deeper dives into specialized topics.
In previous years, hands-on workshops were also on the agenda, but the 2026 edition is ditching them in favor of shifting its focus further toward facilitated roundtable conversations.
Four expert-led roundtables will take place over the two-day event, encouraging small-group dialogue on targeted disaster management themes. One will center on disaster charity, “highlighting the vital role nonprofit organizations play in preparedness and recovery,” Schwerdt explained.
Other themes will include women’s leadership and community networks, plus a roundtable on “turning early warnings into meaningful action, delivered by the Women LAC Network for Disaster Risk Reduction, supported by the United Nations,” she added.
Schwerdt said updates to the 2026 agenda reflect three core takeaways Fortem hopes attendees walk away with:
- “A deeper and more up-to-date understanding of disaster risks and responses;”
- “obviously, we also hope people build relationships;”
- and “inspiration.”
“We make an active effort to cover as many topics within the industry as possible, and due to this we hope to challenge attendees’ assumptions, [help them] adopt new ideas and [see that they] take away all they have learned and practice this in their own lives and careers,” Schwerdt concluded.
Editor’s Note: Fortem International provided Vendelux with an exclusive link granting the first 50 readers complimentary tickets to Disasters Expo USA 2026. See HERE to claim the offer.
