Disaster Preparation Awareness

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disaster

 

There are so many challenges facing business owners every day from employees showing up and doing good work to attracting new customers to help grow your business while managing the increasing expense costs to run a good business model.

One thing however that is very seldom on your mind is what do I do if a disaster occurs whether it be a weather-related situation or something else like a fire.

We at ServiceMaster Restoration by The Griffin Company would like to share some plan ideas that may help you be ready when a disaster occurs.

First you need to identify the risk

  • Hurricanes
  • Winter weather
  • Earthquakes
  • Tornadoes
  • Wildfires
  • Floods

When identifying these risks, you need to consider where your services to run your business come form for example where computer servers are located, where goods are stored – even areas where your employees commute from or work remotely.

If you have business insurance, make sure you’re covered for disasters that could hurt you.

One thing you can do to make your business more prepared is review one of the U.S. Small Business Administration checklists.

Next you need to develop a plan

IF possible when developing a plan try to put a single person in charge of doing it. This is your disaster plan coordinator. They decide how to develop the plan – but you, as the business owner or manager, should be clear about what they need to include. Here are some questions to think about when you assign this important task

If your business is large enough that it has separate departments, the coordinator may need a committee to help. Each internal department will have its own unique assets, systems and requirements. You don’t want an outsider guessing what those might be.

Next, think about the entire scope of your operations. Do you ship hundreds of packages a day? Then you want to have someone at your shipping company as part of the supporting committee. Any vendor, supplier or government agency that you use on a day-to-day basis should be represented on your committee. They can explain their own disaster preparedness planning and how that will affect your post-disaster operations.

Next what elements are required to have an effective plan

The goal of a disaster plan is to help ensure the well-being of your employees, the stability of your location’s environment and, last but certainly not least, that you can keep your business running.

At the very least, your plan must address all three. Here are the minimum viable elements of a disaster plan:

  • An evacuation policy, including maps and routes
  • Who employees should contact, inside and outside the company, for additional information about what to do
  • Who is required to stay on site to perform essential functions or shut down important items
  • Who is responsible for rescue and medical duties?
  • Employee emergency contact information, plus information about unique medical needs.
  • Special instructions regarding hazardous materials and equipment, if necessary

There may be special circumstances that may need to be addressed.  Here are some examples:

  • An employee with mobility issues
  • An irreplaceable piece of equipment that requires maximum protection
  • A specific OSHA requirement about storage of a certain chemical

And finally, how to implement the plan.

A disaster plan isn’t something you dust off when the red warning stripe comes across your TV screen. You’ll have action items as soon as your plan is complete. The idea is to identify things you can do now so you won’t have to do them in the days or hours before a natural disaster.

  • A Evacuation Route
  • Disaster Communications Material
  • An Employee Preparedness Kit- Having a preparedness kit on hand, stocked with nonperishable food, clean water, first-aid supplies, and emergency tools and backup batteries will serve as valuable resources.
  • Training- every employee has a role to play during an emergency, even if only to get themselves out of the building safely. Your plan should identify which employees are responsible for business continuity and crisis communications. In a small business you as the owner may be responsible for effective training.

We at ServiceMaster Restoration by the Griffin Company hope that this information was helpful to you as business owner. We are here to help with a disaster occurs. We are thoroughly trained and prepared to handle any type of water, fire, weather related or vandalism disaster that occurs. We have the manpower and equipment needed to get your business up and running as soon as possible. We serve the Mobile and Baldwin Counties of Alabama and the Pensacola Florida area. Please call us at 251 473-7766 24 hours a day if you need our help. Also, please visit our website at www.servicemasternow.com to learn more about us.

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