Emergency Planning for Business and Industry

Every year emergencies take their toll on business and industry in terms of lives and dollars, but something can be done.  Businesses of all sizes can limit injury and damage and return more quickly to normal operations if they plan ahead.  Preparedness works!

Business owners should develop a recovery plan for their business by taking the following precautions:

• Include emergency preparedness information in company newsletters, company intranet, employee emails or other company communication tools.
• Consider a telephone calling tree or a voice recording to communicate with employees during an emergency.
• Designate an out-of-town number where employees can leave an, “I’m okay” message during a catastrophic disaster.
• If you have employees with disabilities or functional needs, talk with them about what their needs may be during a disaster.
• Plan for payroll continuity.
• Review and practice what you and your employees intend to do during and after an emergency.
• Establish facility shutdown procedures.
• Establish warning and evacuation procedures.
• Make plans for assisting employees who may need transportation.
• Purchase a NOAA Weather Radio with a warning alarm tone and battery backup.
• Survey your facility. Make plans to protect outside equipment and structures.
• Check if your phone system will work without electricity. If not, have at least one phone line that can operate without electricity.
• Consider the need for backup systems such as portable pumps to remove floodwater and generators to provide emergency power.
• Prepare to move records, computers and other items within your facility or to another location.
• Consider how to recover any digital data if there is a significant power outage or if computers and servers are damaged. Keep tax and payroll records, records of inventory and essential information at an alternate site.
• Establish an alternate operating location and back-up suppliers.
• Maintain three to five days of inventory. If a disaster occurs, the loss isn’t as great.