Business Readiness in the Sunshine State

DEM/DEO Article – Miami Dade Beacon Council

Business Readiness in the Sunshine State

Florida is no stranger to disasters – hurricanes, floods, fires, terrorism and other potential hazards all pose a serious threat to businesses statewide. But Florida’s business owners know that the steps they take today to prepare can make the difference for maintaining business operations when a disaster strikes.

Business Continuity | Get Started Today

Build your business’ resiliency by assessing your risk and developing a business disaster plan. Take advantage of any local resources or training seminars or webinars offered to support your business readiness. Do not wait for the next disaster. Take steps now to develop a plan for your business:

Identify your risk | Where is your business located? You may need to plan for mandatory evacuation orders, road closures or flooding. Contact your insurance provider to ensure you understand your coverage and that it is sufficient to maintain business operations.

Contacting Employees and Business Stakeholders | Save emergency contact lists with your business disaster continuity plan so that you can easily access them whether or not you are in your physical business location. Identify ways that you can reach your employees, vendors, service providers and customers to update them on your business’s operations.

Promote Disaster Preparedness | Encourage those critical to your business to develop individual and family disaster plans. The quicker they can recover personally, the quicker they can return to work and continue business operations.

Back-Up | If your business is damaged or destroyed by a disaster, can you relocate? What critical equipment do you have that is necessary to maintain day-to-day operations? Where are your business records? Ensuring you protect these critical items and have back-up plans will greatly support your business recovery efforts.

Stay Informed | When disaster is imminent, how will you receive emergency notifications for your business? Monitor traditional and social media for regular updates, as well as supply your business with a NOAA Weather Radio. Register to receive local emergency alert notifications for critical alerts by visiting www.FloridaDisaster.org/AlertFlorida. Take advantage of all available information and resource sharing sites.

Florida’s new website, www.FloridaDisaster.biz specifically caters to the private sector by providing real-time updates during an event to ensure owners take the necessary steps to protect their business in a disaster.

FloridaDisaster.biz is a new website developed to provide businesses, small and large, easy access to critical information before, during and after a disaster. The State Emergency Response Team’s Emergency Support Function 18, Business, Industry and Economic Stabilization, works closely with local, state and federal partners to provide users verified, accurate and timely information so they can make decisions to help their business recover more quickly after a disaster.

Stay in the know! Register your business today to view resources, begin your business disaster continuity plan and cultivate a culture of preparedness in the workplace. More importantly, when disaster strikes, monitor the site for regular situational reports from the state emergency operations center, as well as maintain awareness of major road closures, evacuation orders and curfews across the state, as they may affect your business.

Emergency Support Function 18 | Business, Industry and Economic Stabilization

When disaster strikes in the state of Florida and the situation has outgrown the scope of local government, the Florida State Emergency Response Team activates to support local emergency management to serve impacted residents and businesses.

Within the State Emergency Response Team, Emergency Support Function (ESF) 18 coordinates the needs of the private sector with local, state and federal agencies during the response and recovery of a disaster. Establishing public-private partnerships prior to a disaster enables ESF 18 to identify the needs of the private sector, as well as to identify resources available from private sector partners to support response and recovery operations for all Floridians. The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) leads ESF 18, with support from the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM).

For information about Emergency Support Function 18 and Florida’s Public Private Partnerships, please email ESF18@em.myflorida.com.