Everyone wants to feel safe – we install security systems, cameras and other gadgets to try and protect our families and property. All the gadgets in the world, however, need maintenance! So if you haven’t done it already, go around and change the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. It really could be a matter of life or death.

After the storm passes, what do I do?

Hopefully, if a hurricane does hit, you’ll be fine. That’s always our wish! However, let’s say you’re not. Nothing catastrophic, no trees on your roof or lawn furniture through your window. But, lets say you suffered what we personally suffered back in 2004 during Charlie, I think it was. At that time, we still had some undeveloped land at the end of our street, and a power pole was knocked-down along with a tree. Since we were certainly not the only ones without power, and as we later heard, out-of-state crews were having difficulty finding neighborhoods; we were without power for close to a week. Did I mention? We run our business from our home. Without a disaster operation plan, many folks in our same situation – even companies who could loose their storefronts, could be in for a very rough ride. How do you operate? Where would you go? How would employees work if their homes were fine, but roads were cut-off and they couldn’t come in? It’s that question I explore here.

1) From backup to Back Up
In my initial post, I mentioned backing-up your data. This is obviously an attempt to keep your valuable information, personal or business, from being lost. What do you do, however, if you can’t get it right back on your own machines? Obviously, smooth operations are the key to surviving in a post-traumatic environment. The easier and faster you can get back to ‘normal’ for your employees and customers, the more they will appreciate you. One way is to have a secondary site picked-out. In our case, we invaded the spare bedroom of a friend, and in the immediate, charged our cellphones at a neighbor’s home on another block. If your business is less mobile, you may consider having your employees telecommute. Paying for a local company to backup your servers at a secure facility and having web-accessible software options for your salespeople and even management, will allow your business to continue on with minimal interruption. For home users, the explosion of social media offers another refuge in the storm. If your relatives want to contact you and phone lines are down and the cell towers are jammed, you might be able to get online at a friend’s home and post your status on Facebook. If you’re sitting on the fence wondering why you’d ever use a site like that – there you go!

2) Have some low-tech options available
We are as guilty as the next people about not having paper backups. Especially now, the push is to be ‘green’ and that means using less paper. Maybe you don’t need to print-out every single interaction, but at the very least, have a recent phone list for both your employees and customers. Go old-school: get a three-ring binder, print out a neat list in Excel or equivalent program, hole-punch and insert. Depending on the database you use, it should be as simple as exporting your contact list as a .csv file. If you are a small business like we are, sync your contact data with your PDA or Smartphone. That way even if you can’t get to a computer, at least you’ll know it’s a customer calling and your people can still make calls to current prospects. Paper work orders, even if they are just kept for emergencies, will help in the field to ensure everything is covered. Make sure they are up-to-date with your correct address, phone # and any appropriate information-gathering fields are relevant. For the homeowner, having a three-ring binder at all times with up-to-date contact information, insurance policies and phone numbers (home/car/health), health information if relevant and any other information specific to your situation is vital. (Pet photos, nursing home info, etc) If you need to go to a shelter, for example, the last thing you want to be thinking is ‘how do I even contact my insurance company?’

3) Prepare for the worst – hope for the best
None of us want to believe a storm will hit. “That, won’t happen to me“, we say. Every time we see folks on the news, spray hitting their backs or water creeping up their porch, as they stubbornly speak with a reporter about how they just can’t leave their home and belongings.
Can I say this? Don’t be an idiot. Prepare now. Prepare on an off-year, tweak the plan where appropriate and stick with it. Don’t get lazy! The one year you say ‘oh, yeah we’re fine. It hasn’t happened yet’ will be the year you could have used that disaster plan. There’s this guy named Murphy – I’m sure you’ve heard of him. If he’s going to have the last laugh? Don’t let it be at your expense.

The reality is electronics are delicate things. Even if we just get some heavy rain (much like we just had this past week) it can wreak havoc on un-protected systems. So, even though I can’t force you to be prepared for the worst a storm can bring I can give you advice on what you can do to ride-out this hurricane season while keeping your equipment as safe as possible.

• Check your surge protection/UPS – when did you buy, or have installed, the strips connected to your TV & components? Your camera system? Your computer(s)/phone system? If the answer was anything short of ‘a couple months ago’ start looking for sales and upgrade! It only takes one hit to ruin a surge surpressor. Unless you’ve got some serious backup, it’s definitely time to change it out before you get nailed and it doesn’t protect your sensitive equipment! Heck, if it’s a really good deal – buy two. **Note: Those ‘guarantees’ that come with some surge protectors will require pictures of the equipment you have, possibly serial #’s and they are very strict about how things must be plugged-in. If you’ve had it for a couple years and you get burned, don’t expect that warranty money!

• Backup your computer’s information – This is something we should all do at least once-a-month for personal computers, and daily or weekly for business. If it’s not something you’ve done before, or are spotty about keeping up with it yourself, consider one of the many online services that will backup your data for you, automatically. We use LiveDrive, which is located in the UK. Isn’t the internet great?! There are other companies as well – another popular choice here in the states is Carbonite – no matter if you do it yourself using a CD writer or external drive, or use a service to backup your data: start doing it now! If you get a surge or strike that hits your internet source (cable or DSL) it can fry your system and leave you starting over.

• Check any outdoor equipment and be prepared to bring it in – The cameras we provide are weatherproof with tight housings. If you purchased cameras yourself in a kit, it might be a good idea to take a look after it rains and make sure the housing is still in good condition. If you are getting a ‘fuzzy’ picture on your TV or DVR, there could be condensation in the lens and your camera isn’t as weather/waterproof as you might have thought! Also don’t forget about outdoor rock/planter speakers. It’s one thing to keep working if it gets some pool water splashed on it. It’s quite another to expect it to survive sustained high-powered winds and driving rain. **If connections will be exposed, put a heavy duty plastic bag around them and secure with duck tape. For extra protection, wrap the ends with electrical tape beforehand.

If you have a generator, now is the time to get it serviced! If you don’t, taking these extra precautions will help you to get through even the smallest of inconveniences with your devices intact. We always hope if a storm does develop it will miss us! But Mother Nature is un-predictable and it’s better to be prepared than sorry.
Technorati Profile