The 2025 Atlantic Hurricane Season Is Here—What Offshore & Maritime Workers Can Expect

June 1 marks the beginning of the Atlantic hurricane season. Throughout the Gulf of Mexico, maritime and harbor workers alike prepare to face storms that could threaten not only their jobs and homes, but also their very lives.

With early forecasts predicting yet another above-average season, maritime companies and offshore oil and gas operators must be on high alert to contend with more named storms, rapid intensification, and smaller decision windows for safe evacuation.

Below is a snapshot of the latest outlook—and what it means for the people who drill wells, run supply boats, and keep America’s energy and cargo moving.

The 2025 Atlantic Hurricane Season Forecast in Brief

Colorado State University (CSU) forecasters anticipate 17 named storms, with 9 hurricanes and 3 major hurricanes (Category 3 or higher). AccuWeather predicts 13 to 18 named storms, with 7 to 10 hurricanes and 3 to 5 major hurricanes—as well as up to 6 potential U.S. landfalls. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicts that above-average Atlantic temperatures will set the stage for 13 to 19 total named storms, 6 to 10 hurricanes, and 3 to 5 major hurricanes.

Why do meteorologists anticipate an above-average year?

• Record-high sea-surface temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico and Main Development Region (MDR), which stretches from the west coast of northern Africa to the east coast of Central America and the Gulf Coast.
• A shift away from El Niño reduces upper-level wind shear that would otherwise tear developing storms apart.
• Similar ocean-atmosphere patterns from years such as 2017 and 2020, which were both highly active Atlantic hurricane seasons.

Specific Hazards That This Year’s Hurricane Season May Bring

Offshore operations may face specific hazards brought about by the 2025 season. This includes rapid intensification, the dramatic strengthening of a storm within a short period of time, specifically a 35+ mph wind speed increase within a 24-hour window. Rapid intensification turned 2024’s Hurricane Helene from a tropical storm to a Category 4 hurricane in less than two days.

Loop Current heat is another factor. This warm, deep current brings water from the Caribbean Sea to the Gulf, providing an energy source for tropical storms. The sea surface temperature in the region may reach 82°F or higher, powering storms as they approach offshore leases and coastal regions.

Atlantic storms can bring rogue waves that put jack-up rigs, liftboats, MODUs, and other offshore vessels at risk of listing or capsizing. Even massive cruise ships and commercial fishing vessels could be overturned and lost in waves reaching more than 90 feet, as recorded during Hurricane Ivan.

Who Is Responsible for Protecting Workers During Storms?

Atlantic hurricanes are inevitable. Whether or not 2025 is an above-average season as predicted, workers’ lives will be put at risk if drilling operators and maritime companies do not prioritize storm readiness.

Shipowners and employers have clear, non-negotiable duties under admiralty and maritime law:

• Provide a seaworthy vessel. Under general maritime law, owners must deliver a ship that is fit for its intended voyage. That means sound hull and machinery, up-to-date navigation and weather routing systems, certified lifesaving gear, and a full, competent crew ready to respond when a storm track shifts.
• Exercise due care in voyage planning. Both the Jones Act and the International Safety Management (ISM) Code obligate masters—and the companies directing them—to route vessels according to predicted storm paths. Safe passage planning must not be overridden due to commercial pressure.
• Protect fixed platform crews under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. For platforms, turbines, and jack-ups on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf, operators must follow BSEE emergency evacuation plans, pull non-essential personnel before helicopter operations shut down, and secure equipment to prevent damage or injury.
• Communicate accurate, timely weather intelligence. Safety and Environmental Management Systems (SEMS II) and OSHA standards require shore bases to push National Hurricane Center updates, site-specific thresholds, and shutdown orders to every asset—no mixed messages, no radio silence, no guessing.

Hard-Earned Lessons: Recent Storm Incidents

When maritime companies fail to evacuate crews or monitor weather conditions, the results can be horrific. That’s what happened in 2015’s Hurricane Joaquin, when the El Faro steamed directly into the storm’s eyewall. All 33 crew members on the cargo vessel were lost.

In 2021, 142 crew members were left stranded on the Globetrotter II during Hurricane Ida. They spent 55 terrifying hours on the drillship, which was battered by 150-mph winds and 80-foot swells, all because management delayed disconnection and evacuation. Miraculously, no crew members were lost in the storm, but many suffered serious trauma.

Also in 2021, a sudden squall capsized the SEACOR Power off the coast of Louisiana. 13 crew members were lost. Upon investigating the incident, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found a number of failures, one of which was “…weather information that the vessel’s operator, SEACOR Marine, provided to the SEACOR Power’s crew was insufficient for making weather-related decisions about the liftboat’s operation.”

Your Rights if a Company Gambles with Weather

Whether you sail as a Jones Act seaman or work on a fixed platform, maritime law promises a safe work environment. If an operator cuts corners—ignores hurricane bulletins, pressures you to stay aboard, or fails to provide functioning lifesaving gear—you may be entitled to financial compensation meant to make your life whole again.

Crew members injured in hurricanes may be able to pursue:

• Maintenance and cure (immediate medical care and living expenses)
• Lost wages and future earnings
• Compensation for pain, suffering, and mental anguish
• Punitive damages if the misconduct was reckless or willful

Families of those lost at sea can seek compensation under the Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA) or state wrongful death statutes, depending on location.

Hurricane Season Is Part of the Job—But Disasters Are Not

Hurricanes are acts of nature, but worker deaths and injuries are often the result of negligence. With predictive models, real-time ocean data, and decades of case histories, vessel owners and operators have every tool they need to protect crews from storms. When they choose profit over prudence, Arnold & Itkin is ready to hold them accountable—no matter what.

Our maritime lawyers have represented offshore workers after the Deepwater Horizon explosion, the loss of the El Faro, and other major Gulf hurricane disasters over the last 20 years. We’ve won more than $20 billion for clients nationwide by outworking, outthinking, and outperforming the world’s largest corporations. If you or your family need answers after a storm-related injury, call us. We can fight for the future you deserve.

Reach out at (888) 346-5024 today for a free, confidential consultation.