Hurricane Irma: A Lesson in Emergency Planning

Hurricane Irma: A Lesson in Emergency Planning

As Hurricane Irma made its way towards Florida, I realized that I had no Disaster Preparedness Plan. ​How could I have missed this important aspect of business planning? Prepare for unexpected to avoid becoming a FEMA statistic. 

When someone asks me about my strengths, one of the first things that comes to mind is planning.  I truly love the whole process of creating a long-term vision, defining strategy and mapping out a tactical plan to achieve success.  But a few weeks ago, as Hurricane Irma made its way towards Florida, I quickly realized that I had no Disaster Preparedness Plan.  How could I have missed this important aspect of business planning?  As meteorologists predicted that Irma was headed for the Gulf coast, it was time to take immediate action.

 40% of Businesses Don’t Survive a Disaster
According to FEMA, 40% of businesses never reopen following a disaster.  That’s why it’s important to create your emergency plan.  Managing potential risk across both your business and personal life needs to be taken seriously.  This risk is not just for coastal locations either as disasters take many forms: fire, flood, tornado, earthquake, terrorist attack, etc. When I lived in the Northeast, following Hurricane Sandy, we lost power for 6 ½ days even though we were over 100 miles from the coast. 

Preparation is Key
I didn’t start preparing until Hurricane Irma was approaching, but fortunately, I still had time to address the critical items. But for many businesses, disaster strikes without warning.  Take the following steps to ensure you’re not caught off guard: 

• Develop a continuity action plan that includes how to handle crisis communications, defines essential operations, prepares for utility disruptions and helps manage the business remotely.
• Establish processes and policies for customers, vendors and employees so they know what to expect before and after a disaster.  Provide information, including links to government and local resources to help everyone prepare in advance - both personally and professionally.
• Review insurance policies so you’re aware of what’s covered, deductibles and how to file claims.
• Conduct a threat analysis to identify and secure vulnerable areas such as buildings and equipment from water, wind, fire, etc. Determine what emergency supplies should be kept on-hand, including any critical items that could prevent the business from re-opening.  

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What Happens if You Lose All Your Files?
As Florida braced for Irma - storm surge, flooding and wind damage were my key concerns.  Anxiety turned to panic when I realized there was no records management system in place.  It took hours to identify and re-locate important business and personal documents. Be sure to address both electronic and physical files to limit potential loss:      

• Store business documents in the cloud with a regular, systematic process to manage files.  Google Drive, Dropbox and other platforms offer free storage options to get you started. Check out your paid subscriptions like Microsoft Suite, Adobe Creative Cloud, etc. which also offer cloud back-up as an annual benefit.
• Keep track of important personal documents.  While cloud storage is ideal for electronic files, safely storing original documents, such as birth certificates and wills, is equally important. This can be as simple as a fire and water-proof safe.  I also have printed samples from past projects on-hand.  Moving several of these items to an off-site storage location brought peace of mind.

It’s been weeks since the hurricane and I’m still finalizing my emergency plan.  Thankfully we didn’t have any major issues following the storm.  But the wildfires raging across Northern California are an awful reminder that disaster takes many forms and often occurs without warning.

While a strategic plan is important to grow your business, not planning for the unexpected can suddenly end your business.  Visit www.ready.gov for information and checklists to help you plan.  Don’t let your business hopes and dreams become a FEMA statistic, create your emergency preparedness plan today