Emergency Preparedness in the Workplace

Last week the East Coast was rammed by Hurricane Sandy, which is now the largest Atlantic hurricane on record, as well as the second costliest (following only 2005’s Hurricane Katrina). In its wake, over a hundred people have been killed, thousands of homes have been destroyed, and millions have been left without power.

A firm that performs catastrophe risk modeling “estimates… $20 billion in insured losses and $50 billion in economic losses in the United States.” These losses cannot be calculated just by property damage, but also by reduced productivity. Many workers lost hours or days of work due to power outages, mass transit suspensions, bridge and tunnel closings, evacuations, and other city- and state-wide measures implemented to protect citizens.

Cases like Sandy prove that it’s imperative for businesses to plan ahead—both for emergencies and for operational continuity in case of building closings, power cutoffs, and transportation shutdowns.



Emergency Planning

Every workplace should have an emergency action plan. There are several websites from knowledgeable organizations that offer useful guidelines specifically for work sites:

• American Red Cross
• Ready.gov
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

Business Continuity Planning

In case of office closings, workplace relocations, or other disruptions due to disasters or pandemics, employers should have a business continuity plan in place.

Such a plan should include:

• A hub of information that can be accessed by everyone from home (a phone line with an automated message or a website) 
• Departmental meetings in advance of an imminent disaster, if possible 
• Up-to-date lists of employees’ personal contact information in case business phones or email are down 
• A meeting involving Information Technology (IT) employees to help ensure technological maintenance through a disaster 

The main goal of the back-up plan is to keep workers safe and informed, while maintaining the highest possible level of productivity. CSOOnline offers more in-depth details on how businesses can remain operational during disasters.

Bottom line: if your business has not formed an emergency protocol or business continuity plan, do it ASAP. You don’t need to look any further than the devastation wrought by Sandy to understand their importance.

--Joanna Kim 

Joanna Kim is a content strategist/writer for HRI, which has felt the impact of Hurricane Sandy. Everyone here at HRI remains dedicated to serving their clients as we recover from the effects of the storm.