Good news: it is possible to plan for the unpredictable.
Imagine waking up one morning, in the final stretch of your wedding planning, to find your venue and the surrounding area being evacuated due to wildfire. It's something no soonlywed ever wants to think about. But for Karly and Dave Frank, it was a reality.
When a fire broke out int he Palisades in Southern California less than two weeks before their wedding, Karly Frank reached out to her planner, Jillian Bobinski of Jillian Nicole Events, to explore backup venues. Days later, the original venue needed to cancel, issuing a full refund.
“Luckily, Jillian had found three available venues for our wedding — less than 10 days away. Dave and I toured them all, we signed a new contract and paid a deposit,” Frank recalls.
The Franks' experience is not an isolated one. Cancellations, changed locations, and overall planning for the unexpected are becoming increasingly critical no matter where your wedding is held. In the past year, the United States alone has seen the effects of climate change as inland North Carolina towns were decimated by hurricanes, Florida Panhandle beaches blanketed in snow, and areas of Los Angeles destroyed by wildfires. “Severe weather is becoming more prevalent, and a lot of people, myself included, are admitting that climate change is real and is giving us more severe weather that tended to not happen at different times of the year or different places,” explains Andrew Leavitt, founder of IronicReports.com, a meteorology company providing concierge services to customers planning around weddings and other events.
While preparing for every hypothetical scenario should not become a prominent stress of your wedding planning, it is essential to be ready. Leavitt recommends looking at climatology, the scientific and historical study of climate, and letting it be your guide to planning for the unexpected.
“[We had an event in Connecticut where] we looked at the climatology and went back to 1871. There were a total of 12 severe tropical storms that had pushed their way up to the north and had created dire situations that they needed to evacuate for,” says Leavitt. “There was a 99% chance this would not have happened according to history, but they fell into it.”
“The first thing that came into my type-A brain was that I would have never thought to plan for a contingency for this situation,” remarks Frank. “Rain I was prepared for; fire I was not.”
A venue pivot isn't the only aspect of the day that can be impacted by severe weather. When a natural disaster strikes, the safety of all your vendors and guests is paramount — and flexibility is key.
“Every situation is going to be unique and dependent on the scenario,” says Ian Ramirez, venue director and co-owner at Madera Estates in Conroe, Texas. “I think for us vendors and venues, we always want to go above and beyond for our couples, even in those instances of uncertainty and impending doom.”
Ramirez recounts a wedding where, due to forecasted weather, the florist refused to travel on the day of the wedding. He suggested they come to the venue the day before the wedding to deliver everything.
“We stored [the flowers] in one of our buildings and lowered the AC as low as we could, so we could keep the flowers as fresh as possible,” recalls Ramirez. “My advice to couples, know your vendors are going to have your back when it comes to those instances.”
Storms, fires, and other unexpected events can strike anywhere, at any time, altering your timeline for pre-wedding tasks like picking up your attire. Though these situations cannot be avoided, they can be prepared for ahead of time.
“[Look into] purchasing hard goods such as your gown and suiting on a credit card to have twice the protection,” recommends Tabitha Roberts, co-owner of Brocade Bridal and principal for Roberts & Co. Events in Washington, D.C.
“Many credit card companies have protections in place for all purchase issues due to emergencies or business shutdowns.”
Natural disasters are out of our control, but the good news is that there are ways to anticipate the unknown. Being prepared for the worst starts before you even hire your first wedding vendor.
When going on venue tours, take into account possible weather scenarios and ask questions, no matter how rare a scenario may seem. Couples getting married in Florida may not consider asking venues about how they prevent frozen pipes or if they have access to snow plows, but after parts of the Florida Panhandle saw up to eight inches of snow last year, what once seemed like obscure questions are more realistic now.
And asking questions before you book isn't restricted to your venue. Ask your photographer what their photo backup measures are if their SD cards are lost in a fire. Ask your florist what happens if their distributors and farm partners are impacted by weather-related damage. How will your caterer be impacted if there is a power outage while the food is being prepared?
Although not every single hypothetical scenario can be thought about ahead of time, you can be protected from the unexpected results of climate change with the help of your contracts.
Leah Weinberg, an attorney and former wedding planner based in New York City, stresses the importance of reading through your contracts and understanding the clauses before you sign. When it comes to protection from natural disasters, your contracts should include a force majeure clause.
“In general, force majeure events are things like acts of God, weather events, war, government action … but your specific contract can define it, honestly, any way that it wants to,” explains Weinberg. “One of the things that I actually like to include [in my contracts] is my definition of force majeure, and part of that definition includes things that affect you personally, like death in the family, medical, health conditions, emergencies, accidents, tragic events.”
“What the fore majeure clause needs to have, number one, is to define what is considered a fore majeure event,” explains Weinberg. “BUt then it needs to go a step further and talk about what happens in the event of a force majeure event and its impact on either the event, the relationship, or a vendor showing up.”
TIP: Collect contact information (email and phone!) for all of your guests during the RSVP process. “I did not, and I regretted it,” states Frank. “We had to individually update every guest through texts, calls, and WhatsApp as changes were being made because we could not send out mass communications.
Weinberg recommends reading your contract thoroughly and asking a lawyer or the vendor any clarifying questions, as every vendor's contract is different and can vary based on the location and equipment needed.
“Most vendors are probably going to have a safe work-environment provision,” says Weinberg. “If your vendor is in a position where they are feeling unsafe, that provision is going to allow them to either pause their services or terminate their services. Couples should expect to see a provision like that where the people getting married can't fore a vendor to do something unsafe in light of severe weather conditions. Florists, caterers, DJs, bands, lighting — if your wedding is happening outside — those vendors are probably going to have provisions that talk about what can and can't happen with their materials and equipment.”
To add additional protection to your wedding day, Weinberg suggests investing in an insurance policy. Wedding insurance is available through companies like WedSafe or Wedding Protector Plan and even companies where you might already have policies like Allstate, Geico, USAA, and more.
With contracts and insurance in place, it's important to remember that communication is key. Have kindness and respect for your vendors; their businesses are being impacted by the natural events as well. Being on the same page and supporting your vendors will result in the best experience for everyone. When you're all in agreement on your backup plans, last-minute pivots can be executed more smoothly and efficiently.
“Loving your Plan B promises that you will have a beautiful day regardless of wind, rain, or snow,” advises Roberts.
To prepare for the weather, Leavitt suggests monitoring the National Weather Service, which offers a more location-specific forecast than your phone's built-in weather app or other forecast reports. Weather can impact more than just your wedding day — even if you have a beautiful sunny day on the actual day of your outdoor wedding.
“We always try to think about the fact that it's not just the weather that affects you the day-of; it's the weather that affects teh whole load-in [and load-out] process,” explains Leavitt. “The pivot [plans] and the communication really go hand-in-hand. Prep people ahead of time, letting your vendors and venue know, asking the question, ‘Is it okay if our vendor loads in a day early?' or ‘We know our loadout is going to be very tricky because there's going to be freezing conditions after the wedding.'”
If you find yourself resorting to Plan B, or even C or D, as your wedding approaches, stay focused on the reason you're having this wedding in the first place: your marriage. No matter what the wedding day ends up looking like, whether it needs to be moved, postponed, or have a smaller guest list, it still results in you marrying the love of your life.
“Try to remain as unemotional as possible so that you can make the decisions you need to make in order to make your wedding happen,” advises Frank. “I am not saying that you can't be sad — I sobbed on the floor of our bedroom more than once throughout this process. But you need to let go of what was ‘supposed to be' and focus on what you can feasibly do now. It's unfair that anyone has to go through this, but lingering on what you planned to happen will only slow down the decisions you have to make. Find the time to grieve what you thought would be, but then put on your logical decision-making hat and move forward. At your wedding, you will completely forget about the stress you felt leading into it.
WHAT TO DO WHEN NATURAL DISASTER STRIKES
- Take a deep breath. Remember that this natural disaster is likely impacting everyone around you, including your vendors and guests. Act with kindness and respect, and remember that you are all humans.
- Contact your vendors. Start by contacting your wedding planner to discuss which arrangements may be impacted and potential solutions. If you do not have a wedding planner or coordinator, reach out to your venue if they have not already contacted you.
- Review your contracts. Refresh yourself on what is and isn't covered in the event of an emergency.
- Communicate plan changes with guests. If locations, times, or the safety of your event are impacted, send communication updates to all of your guests.
- Reach out to your wedding insurance company. Contact your agent to explain the situation and learn what is needed to file a claim.
**This article was originally featured in Love Inc. V10 print issue. Buy your copy here.**
Written by Emily Rochotte | Cover photo by Suparerg Suksai
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