Types Of Natural Disasters Your Business Needs To Prepare For

Did you know that one-third of companies that are impacted by a natural disaster never reopen? Regardless of whether it is a hurricane, a tornado, or an earthquake, natural disasters else can have a catastrophic impact on your business.  As a result, you must understand the various types of natural disasters your business needs to prepare for. Here are the common types of natural disasters that you should know.

Tornadoes

Did you know that America gets almost four times as many tornadoes as the rest of the world combined? Did you also know that tornadoes cause almost $17 billion in damages every year? That is how frequent and catastrophic a tornado can be for your business. In fact, data loss, financial impact, downtime, or even permanent closure are just some of the many impacts your business can experience. Hence, if your business is located in such a tornado-prone area, your business needs to be ready for it. While your business cannot avoid such a natural disaster, you can try to shift to a location that is less prone to tornadoes. In addition, protect your business with tornado insurance, and upload crucial data and documents in the cloud.

Wildfires

Wildfires are another type of common natural disaster that your business needs to be prepared for. Not only is it difficult to control, but can also break out at any time, and spread easily. This is also why wildfires are extremely dangerous. In fact, according to the  National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), about 8.8 million acres were burned across the US in 2018. In addition, the risk of wildfires increases during warmer seasons like summer and varies in different states. Hence, you need to protect your business from wildfires by building a strong wildfire plan at your facility, and ensuring there is frequent data backup and data is stored in an offsite location. In addition, you should also sign your business up for the emergency notification systems and have emergency kits available nearby. Here is a tip. Listen to local radio and television for the latest on safe evacuation routes.

Earthquakes

Is your business located in California or Alaska? Or perhaps it is on or near the west coast of the United States? If your answer is yes, your business needs to be extra prepared for earthquakes. After all, these are the states and areas that tend to have the most earthquakes on average in the United States. Nonetheless, if your business is not located in these earthquake-prone areas, you should still prepare your business for it.

That is because earthquakes can cause adverse and significant damages to your business. For instance, it can cause severe physical and infrastructure damage. As such, your business will need to spend a large sum of money to build back the business, which can develop into irrecoverable losses. Moreover, one thing that many do not realize is the emotional effect that natural disasters like earthquakes can cause on employees. Given how disastrous an earthquake is, it is not a surprise that it can cause higher stress, depression, anxiety, cognition, and sleep levels. In fact, 15% of people who experience earthquakes are likely to experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Hence, it is important to prepare both your business and your employees for before and after earthquakes.