Disaster Recovery News

If you own a business, you know the importance of preparedness. You prepare for client meetings, taxes, presentations and so on. One of the hardest things to prepare for, however, is a disaster. It is easy to put disaster preparedness at the back of your mind, especially if a disaster is not happening presently. According to a survey the Red Cross conducted in 2009, 89 percent of those surveyed felt it is necessary to be prepared for a disaster, but only 12 percent had an emergency disaster plan in place. Just as your prepare a budget and ways to save money, preparing for a disaster can save your business thousands of dollars and assist with business continuity.

The Ready Rating™ Program from the American Red Cross is a free, online program that can help you prepare for different disasters scenarios that can affect your business, from floods to fires to illnesses. When you sign up for the program, you learn about how prepared your business truly is to handle any emergency. After completing the readiness survey, you receive feedback regarding how to improve your business disaster planning efforts. Even if you have created a business disaster plan, you can still benefit from the Rating Ready™ Program because you may learn of ways to better prepare your employees or learn about consideration you did not think about when you made your plan.

After creating your business emergency disaster plan, learn the steps to recover from a disaster.

[Image: American Red Cross]

Image from Pine River Cheese & Butter Co-op

The Pine River Cheese and Butter Co-op suffered major fire damage after a September 7, 2010 blaze broke out in the northwest corner of the building, causing smoke and water damage throughout the facility. As a result, the food processing facility will be closed during the remediation process. The cause of the fire is unknown.

“The Lucknow Sentinel” reports the roofing system will be changed and cleaned because of smoke damage. The Pine River Cheese and Butter Co-op’s board of directors have opened a temporary retail store and offices during the clean-up. Additionally, those who previously worked in the damaged plant have new responsibilities to help clean and repair the facility so they do not suffer a loss of income.

Aside from the obvious consequences of the fire, the disaster was also detrimental to business matters. It is reported that the Pine River Cheese and Butter Co-op was working towards sealing a deal with retail giant Wal-Mart and was preparing for the holiday season before the incident. Now these matters are forced to be on the backburner until the plant is operational again.

Like the Pine River Cheese and Butter Co-op, it is important that companies have a business disaster plan should the unthinkable ever happen. The disaster preparations should include a plan to recover and a business continuity plan so business operations can still take place. The recovery process, however, is not just about fixing a damaged building. It also includes plans to restore wet documents and remediate mold damage.

Learn how businesses can recover from a fire.

Image by quapan

When businesses plan for a disaster, the usual is typically thought-out: emergency numbers, a back-up work site, evacuation plans, insurance matters, etc. How about the technology risks at stake?

Assessing Technology Risks

The Times-Standard reports that assessing risks involving technology begins with creating inventories of applications and hardware. Why? After a disaster, applications and hardware may need to be reinstalled and replaced. Having a list of hardware can help a business create a budget, file an insurance claim, or find a replacement after a disaster. It is advised to keep licenses and distribution media in a safe location away from the business so proof of ownership is easy to establish when the time comes.

When the Power Goes Out

What will your business do if the power goes out? Has this been planned for? This is an issue many businesses need to consider because, sometimes, no power equals no work being done, which equals no revenue.

Backing-up Data

Every business should back up data at regularly-scheduled times. There are many ways to do this: on to CDs or DVDs, a flash stick, an external hard drive, or even online. Some businesses even keep backed-up storage off-site in the event of a fire at the office.

When planning on data backups, think: What information is the most important to save? How often will this information need to be backed-up? For how long do I need to save the data file? If any data is lost, can it be recovered quickly?

One of the most frustrating losses after a disaster is the loss of the technology a business depended on to run. Learn more about how business can better plan for a disaster.

Video about the fire at the View Point Inn, as seen in the Twilight movie

A fire broke out Sunday night at the historic View Point Inn in Corbett, OR. Carl Linde built the Inn in 1924 for Grace Palmer. The Inn is on the National Register of Historic Places. This is also where the prom scene was filmed in the popular movie, Twilight.

The fire started within the walls of the kitchen and spread to the floors above it. The kitchen is currently out of service because of the blaze. The basement and a second-floor room have also been damaged.

Co-owner, Geoff Thompson, reported, “We had a great dinner and then smoke started coming out of the kitchen’s light fixtures.”

Angelo Simione, the other co-owner of the View Point Inn, stated to KPTV: “(It’s) very disheartening to see the damage like this. We’re working day by day just to keep this place going, to keep the business going. Small business has been hurt pretty badly, so this fire is the last thing we needed.”

Like Simione stated, business continuity is greatly affected after a disaster like a fire. One of the first things business owners should do after a disaster is contact a fire restoration specialist who can help restore important documents and the structure of the building. More on business continuity and fire damage recovery.

Learn more about creating a disaster plan for your business.