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Prepare My Business for an Emergency

Businesses can do much to prepare for the impact of the many hazards they face in today’s world including natural hazards, human-caused hazards or technology related hazards.

  • Natural hazards could be a flood, hurricane, tornado, earthquake or a widespread serious illness such as the H1N1 flu virus pandemic.
  • Human-caused hazards include accidents, acts of violence by people and acts of terrorism.
  • Examples of technology-related hazards are the failure or malfunction of systems, equipment or software.

DHS/FEMA sponsors a resource called “Ready Business” to assist businesses in developing a preparedness program by providing tools to create a plan that addresses the impact of many hazards. The direction recommended is to adopt a standard for Disaster/Emergency Management and Business Continuity Programs called an “all hazards approach.”

Steps to Create a Business Preparedness Program

To develop an “all hazards approach,” DHS has adopted National Fire Protection Association 1600 (NFPA 1600) as the American National Standard for developing a preparedness program.

There are five steps toward creating a business preparedness program:

1. Program Management

  • Organize, develop and administer your preparedness program
  • Identify regulations that establish minimum requirements for your program

2. Planning

  • Gather information about hazards and assess risks
  • Conduct a business impact analysis (BIA)
  • Examine ways to prevent hazards and reduce risks

3. Implementation

Write a preparedness plan addressing:

  • Resource management
  • Emergency response
  • Crisis communications
  • Business continuity
  • Information technology
  • Employee assistance
  • Incident management

4. Testing and Exercises

  • Test and evaluate your plan
  • Define different types of exercises
  • Learn how to conduct exercises
  • Use exercise results to evaluate the effectiveness of the plan

5. Program Improvement

  • Identify when the preparedness program needs to be reviewed
  • Discover methods to evaluate the preparedness program
  • Utilize the review to make necessary changes and plan improvements
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Emergency Action Plans: What Does Your Business Need?

An emergency action plan is a set of guidelines for businesses to follow during disasters. A good EAP not only details actions businesses will take in the event of an emergency but also helps them prevent catastrophe, prepare for prolonged shutdowns, and return to normal operations post-disaster.

Why Businesses Need Emergency Action Plans

Emergency action plans outline steps a business will take to maintain continuity and protect its employees and customers in response to various types of emergencies, including:

  • Hazardous material spills
  • Security breaches
  • Terrorist and active shooter threats

Some emergencies demand an immediate response, so it’s critical for businesses to train employees and practice policies and action plans, so they can help to prevent damages and casualties. Other action plans afford businesses more time to respond, yet still require swift action to avoid financial and other catastrophic losses. In such cases, an EAP removes the need to make crucial demands on the fly and enables businesses to execute predetermined measures to protect their people and their finances.

Disaster response planning is only part of the process. When companies take the time to develop emergency action plans, they’re able to discover existing vulnerabilities that could leave them liable for legal damages, penalties and fines. Proper planning, then, helps businesses assess and mitigate risks before they become emergencies.

Emergency action plans reduce the risk of mistakes, and in doing so they save lives, time, money and businesses. Companies that do not have an emergency action plan would be wise to begin developing one right away; and those that already have one should review it to ensure it adequately prepares the business to survive a disaster.

7 Steps to Developing an Effective Business Emergency Action Plan

  • Develop the outline and guidelines of your business emergency action plan. First, before you can actually write out your emergency action plan, you need to organize your business’s objectives and guidelines for the plan. You need to also assess your security emergency needs. Of course, at a high-level, the goal of your plan will be to mitigate the impact of the disaster or emergency on your business, protect your staff, assets, and operations, and ensure that you can get back to business as soon as possible.
  • Assess risks and threats to your business. Once you have a better idea of the federal, local, and business-specific requirements that will play a role in the development of your emergency action plan, your next step will be to assess the risks, threats and emergency needs to and for your business. Of course, it will be impossible to identify and plan for all risks and threats, however, by identifying those that are more likely to affect your business, you can create a more impactful and relevant procedure.
  • Conduct a business impact analysis. Next, you’ll want to use the information you identified in your risk assessment to inform your business impact analysis. Your business impact analysis will try and predict the consequences of business disruption as the result of an emergency or disaster and therefore, will help in the development of your recovery strategy.Once again, it will be impossible to predict exactly how a potential disaster or emergency will impact your business—however, you can use the threats and risks you established in step two to determine what disasters are most likely to affect your business and what that effect looks like.As an example, if your business is located on the coast of Florida, some of your biggest risks might be flood or hurricane damage to your physical location. Therefore, in your business impact analysis, you should consider how these scenarios might disrupt your business—a flood may cause damage to the physical structure of your business that would need to be repaired, or it may ruin inventory that would need to be replaced, etc.
  • Write your business emergency action plan. Now that you’ve accomplished the most significant part of developing your emergency action plan—the actual planning, you should have a sense of the potential risks your business could face, as well as their impact, and as a result, what type of information your emergency action plan should include. Now, it’s time to actually create and write out the plan itself.This will be a time-consuming process, especially since you’ll want to work with other company leaders, your business’s HR department, and even local and governmental resources.
  • Review and test your plan with emergency scenarios. After you’ve written out your business emergency action plan, the process isn’t quite complete yet. Next, you’ll want to review the emergency action plan with other business leaders and test it out.You can arrange a meeting to discuss emergency preparedness, walk through the plan with business leaders, allow for discussion, and record feedback. Once you’ve taken this initial step, you can take a more hands-on approach by conducting drills, tests, and seeing how your business emergency action plan functions in these planned out scenarios. During this time, you might also introduce the plan to your staff, start the training process, and gather their feedback and how the plan works and what could be improved.Then, after you’ve conducted these conversations and tests, you’ll want to regroup with your team leaders to discuss how the process went. You might also ask for written feedback, in the form of a survey, for example, from staff, to gather any and all information you might need to revise the plan.
  • Identify areas of improvement and refine your plan. From your meeting with business leaders, you should come away with areas where your emergency action plan could be improved. At this stage, you’ll want to determine how you can adapt the plan to fix these areas of improvement and refine the document you’ve created as much as necessary.It’s also important to note that your business emergency action plan should be a “living” document. As your business changes and evolves, your emergency and disaster plan will likely change as well. Therefore, although you’ll want to train your staff thoroughly after the document has been created, you’ll want to ensure that you update them (and the document) as processes evolve and change.
  • Work through your business recovery strategies. From all the work you’ve done so far, you should have created and started to implement your business emergency action plan. With this in mind, however, there is one final component of your disaster preparedness that you might want to revisit in more detail: recovery strategies.Although the actions you take before and during a disaster or emergency are essential, it’s also important to determine how your business will function and recover after one of these events occurs. As mentioned above, part of actually writing your business emergency action plan should be detailing the business continuity plan—or, how your business will work to mitigate the negative effects you identified in your business impact analysis.Due to the importance of this part of the business emergency action plan, you might decide to create a separate or more comprehensive document that specifically outlines your business recovery strategies. For this, you’ll want to consider past short-term survival and reactions after a disaster or emergency and focus on the long-term survival of your business.

Emergency action plan resources

The following resources can help businesses like yours develop and execute comprehensive emergency action plans that protect their companies, customers and employees.

  • Ready.gov Sponsored by the Dept. of Homeland Security, this free resource offers detailed information about what to include in a business emergency response plan, how to assess and mitigate risk and how to conduct a business impact analysis. It also includes links to additional resources for pre-incident planning, protective actions for life safety, firefighting, medical response, hazardous materials and workplace violence. Businesses can download Ready.gov’s Emergency Response Plan template and customize it to create their own.
  • FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) FEMA maintains a list of emergency preparedness resources to help businesses plan for and mitigate potential hazards. The page includes a guide for helping small businesses prepare for emergencies, a business continuity plan, disaster protection cost analysis, and worksheets for inventory, emergency supplies, resource requirements and insurance coverage. Businesses will also find helpful case studies that illustrate the impact of disaster and the necessity of a sound emergency response plan.
  • CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) In addition to a general overview of emergency preparedness, the CDC offers links to emergency management for business and industry, the OSHA evacuation plans and procedures, eTool, fire and emergency evacuation drills and protective actions during hazardous material emergencies.
  • Small Business Administration The SBA offers checklists for dealing with various emergencies, from winter weather and hurricanes to earthquakes, floods and cybersecurity. Businesses can also learn about the SBA’s disaster relief programs, which offer financial assistance and economic injury loans.
  • OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Association) OSHA’s emergency preparedness and response page lists general preparation resources plus specific guidelines for disasters ranging from heatwaves and lightning to tornadoes and floods. It also covers biological diseases, toxins, chemicals and nuclear threats. Businesses can study the site to find updated rules and regulations to help them comply with the law. One excellent resource: OSHA’s Principal Emergency Response and Preparedness publication.
  • U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation The foundation offers preparedness tips plus a whole host of emergency planning resources businesses can follow to bolster their emergency response plans. The page features checklists for emergency planning by hazard, guides for reviewing insurance coverage, how to file a claim, crisis communication, employee assistance and other information that can assist businesses with planning. The foundation also offers a Small Business Disaster Preparedness Quick Guide.

As difficult as it may be – and even impossible – to predict when emergencies will occur, a strategic emergency response plan can help businesses mitigate risk, limit losses and protect their employees and customers. Though it takes time and money, it’s well worth the investment because ultimately, comprehensive emergency action plans save companies money, protects livelihoods, and even saves lives when disaster strikes.

LaMarco Systems Can Help You With What’s Next

LaMarco Systems is a leading life safety and integrated security solutions provider — offering comprehensive, all-in-one services and customized solutions that protect people, businesses, and the assets associated with both. For over 20 years, we have partnered with the world’s leading technology companies, security experts, and law enforcement personnel, to constantly reimagine facility security in this rapidly evolving arena. Once you have an EAP in place, and are ready to ensure that your facility has the life safety systems you need, you can trust LaMarco.

All resources

10 Steps to Creating an Emergency Response Plan for Your Business

In an emergency, the actions you take within the first few minutes will largely dictate the severity of consequences to follow. Unexpected situations can happen at any time, which means your company needs a plan of action in order to minimize damage and loss.

This article walks you through the 10 steps involved in creating an effective emergency response plan for your business. You’ll learn how to effectively respond to emergencies, protect your staff and occupants, minimize downtime and fully recover operations. Here’s how to get started.

Running short on time?  Download the Safety and Security Plan Guide here.

Emergency Response Planning for Business Continuity Teams

Step 1: understand the importance of emergency response planning..

Planning for interruptions, emergencies and disasters is a crucial aspect of running a business. An emergency response plan is designed to help companies address various emergency situations that could occur within their organization. The best plans include who to contact, how to act in an emergency, how to mitigate risk and what resources to use to minimize loss.

The main objective of an emergency response plan is to reduce human injury and damage to property in an emergency. It also specifies which staff members should enact emergency response plans, as well as which local emergency teams (i.e. police, fire and rescue, etc.) should be contacted. Ideally, the final outcome of emergency planning is to protect a company’s finances, physical infrastructure, materials and occupants from harm.

Step 2: Brainstorm a list of potential risks, hazards and threat scenarios.

All organizations face risks, hazards and threats, which, left unchecked, can lead to financial loss, illness, injury or even death. It’s a good idea to review potentially dangerous scenarios in a risk assessment . A risk assessment identifies potential hazards and analyzes what could happen if the hazard were to occur.

Understanding your organization’s vulnerabilities is the first step towards proactive emergency response planning and will help you protect your staff and occupants from harm.

In your risk assessment, be sure to prioritize risks according to their severity. Consider the following examples of emergency scenarios:

Download - Active Shooter Protocol for Facility Managers

Step 3: Collect contact information from local emergency personnel.

The list of potential risks you assembled in step #2 will help inform your organization of emergency services you’ll need to contact in a crisis. At a minimum, speak to your local fire department, police department and emergency medical services to determine their anticipated response times, their knowledge of your facility and its hazards, and their capabilities to stabilize an emergency at your facility.

The following list contains a more comprehensive list of emergency personnel you may want to contact :

Step 4: Assess your organization’s resources.

Resources are required to keep occupants safe , protect infrastructure and carry out recovery strategies during a disaster. You’ll want to assess the availability and capabilities of resources for incident stabilization within your organization. Resources can include people, systems and equipment, both within your business and from external sources. Here’s a list of resources you may want to consider:

Facility Safety and Security Plan Guide link to download

Step 5: Create accurate egress plans and evacuation routes.

An egress plan is a map of a facility that houses critical indicators such as posted emergency routes, evacuation paths and red exit signs that lead to stairs and doorways. Even if occupants have never done a fire drill at the facility, it should be obvious where to go in an emergency.

Police officers, medical personnel and other emergency services also rely on accurate floor plans. They help notify emergency services of the best ways to enter a building to get to a threat quickly, safely and efficiently.

Free Resource: Create or update your facility plans in our free guide on “ How to Create An Egress Plan ”. If you’re looking for more insight on creating up-to-date floor plans, contact a professional facility management consultation company today for advice on how to get the most accurate floor plans.

  • Pro Tip: No time to update your floor plans? A data collection service team can do the work for you. They will walk your current floor plans, collect space and asset data, and create two-dimensional models of your plans. An intuitive facility management software can also be used as a visual mapping tool to show the location of critical fire/life safety assets in an emergency. Show your business continuity team, building managers and local emergency personnel the locations of the following within and around your building:
  • Emergency exits
  • Exterior doors and windows
  • Locations of fire extinguishers
  • Fire alarm pull station locations
  • Assembly points for personnel

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Step 6: Create an emergency communications plan.

An emergency communications plan includes information on how both internal and external crisis communications will be handled. Internal communication alerts can be sent via email, paging systems, voice messages or text messages to mobile devices. Use these channels to instruct personnel on how to evacuate the building and relocate to assembly points. You may also send updates on the status of the situation and notification of when it’s safe to return.

External communication during an emergency should also be a part of business continuity planning . External alerts typically discuss the disaster with the media and provide status information to key clients and stakeholders. Your emergency communications plan must be flexible, have management support and be regularly reviewed and updated to address a variety of emergency situations.

Step 7: State required actions in the event of an emergency.

Develop protective, threat-specific emergency procedures for occupants, staff and visitors of your facility to follow in a disaster situation. This portion of your emergency response plan will detail life safety protocols , including evacuation, shelter, shelter-in-place and lock down actions. You’ll also want to determine the required actions that occupants should take during an emergency to protect themselves. Use the following example as a guide for required actions in an emergency:

  • Declare an emergency.
  • Alert personnel using an internal communication system (see step #6).
  • Activate the emergency plan.
  • Evacuate the danger zone, seek shelter-in-place or implement a lock down.
  • Close main shutoffs, if applicable.
  • Call for external aid from local emergency services.
  • Initiate rescue operations.
  • Attend to casualties, if applicable.

Step 8: Disperse responsibilities following the disaster event.

During and following an emergency, many tasks must be completed in order to continue business as usual and ensure occupants are both safe and comfortable. The following list contains responsibilities that will need to be taken care of following a disaster:

Step 9: Train and educate internal personnel on your emergency response plan.

Your business continuity team , as well as your emergency preparedness team, will require continuous training to stay up-to-date on the latest emergency protocols in your business. Education and hands-on training will help your team members fulfill their roles and responsibilities during and after a disaster.

Facilitate exercises that test your team’s knowledge of the emergency response plan. Your emergency preparedness team may also want to host corporate safety awareness programs, orientation exercises, emergency responder training or emergency communication exercises. Learn more about business continuity planning best practices here .

Step 10: Test and revise your emergency response plan.

Creating a comprehensive plan for handling emergencies is a major step toward preventing and recovering from disasters. However, it can be difficult to predict all situations that could occur until the plan is tested.

To put your plan into action, conduct exercises and drills to practice critical portions of the plan. This could involve sending test messages via your emergency notification systems, or practicing an evacuation or lock down. These tests will highlight areas of improvement before a disaster actually occurs.

When shortcomings become apparent, review and revise your plan. Revisit it at least once a year and note any changes to building infrastructure, processes, materials, resources and key personnel.

Discover More Ways to Protect Your Business from Disaster

When an unexpected disruption affects your business, it’s important to respond quickly. A business continuity plan can help you stay prepared (not to mention, it may make the difference between financial ruin and long-term survival of your company). Read tips for protecting your business from harm by reading AkitaBox’s five-step guide to Business Continuity Planning . This comprehensive article will help your organization achieve the following goals:

  • Understand the importance of business continuity planning
  • Conduct a business impact analysis
  • Take steps to reduce identified risks and hazards
  • Create risk mitigation guidelines
  • Assemble recovery plans

You also may find it helpful to download the checklist version of this article for later reference. Click here to receive your free copy of “ 10 Steps to Creating an Emergency Response Plan ”.

Download - Emergency Response Planning Checklist

Let Us Know: What steps has your organization taken to prepare for emergencies? Leave a comment below to let us know!

Meaghan Kelly

Meaghan Kelly

Former marketing content copywriter for AkitaBox.

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Business Emergency Response Plan Template

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Every business should develop and implelement an emergency plan for protecting employees, visitors, contractors, and anyone else on site. An emergency response plan is a written document that enables business to plan for incident response and is included in part of a business continuity program. It should be drafted with known resources available, and include a process for assessing damage, protecting property, and minimizing damage and business disruptions.

More information on emergency response plans can be found at Ready.gov

Emergency Response Plan http://www.ready.gov/business/implementation/emergency

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Business Power Outage Emergency Response Planning in 7 Easy Steps

Power outages can be devastating events that last anywhere from a few hours to days on end. But you don’t have to accept your fate as an idle business. With a power outage emergency response plan, you can mitigate these disruptions and keep your organization moving.    

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  • 7 Steps to a Power Outage Emergency Response Plan

Power Outage Preparedness Year-Round

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Every year, the U.S. electrical grid experiences thousands of interruptions that cut off service to customers, including many businesses that rely on the grid to continue operations. From financial losses and productivity gaps to compromised customer trust, the impact of an unexpected power outage can be severe. In fact, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, U.S. businesses lose billions of dollars a year due to electric power outages. And while 44% of these are still due to environmental effects like weather, according to Ready.gov, we’ve seen a recent increase in unpredictable domestic terror attacks on power infrastructure , making it crucial for safety leaders to prioritize power outage preparedness.

You won’t get very far if you wait until the lights go out to start preparing for a power outage; mitigating a power outage requires planning ahead, making a plan, gathering the resources, and knowing when to activate it all. But not to worry, here’s what you need to do to make sure that your organization doesn’t shut down when the grid does.

Emergency Response Plan Template

7 steps to create your power outage emergency response plan.

The best way to start preparing for a power outage is to develop a power outage emergency response plan . Similar to a crisis management plan , this document will help you determine who to enlist, what their responsibilities should be, the resources they’ll need, and more. In your plan, include the following steps.

Step 1. Identify threats

Before preparing a response strategy, you must understand the threats you might encounter. The exercise best suited to understanding the range of risks your business faces is called a risk assessment, AKA a business threat assessment . It is an indispensable framework for evaluating risks in any part of a business, not just those related to power outages. But we’ll just be focusing on power outages today.

A power outage is a unique threat in that it has variable causes. Therefore, it’s important to assess the risks on two levels:

  • What are the potential threats that could lead to a power outage?
  • What are the various risks that arise for your people and your business in the event of an outage?

Once you’ve identified the potential threats, you can then rate them according to their relative severity and likelihood. Then you can plot them on a “threat matrix” grid to give you an easy visual representation of your threat landscape, guiding your preparedness efforts. For example, you’ll likely want to prioritize preparation for threats that are both highly likely to occur and with high impact on your business.

risk matrix

As you might imagine, one organization’s risks of power outage may vary significantly from another organization’s because of business structure, the vulnerability of a particular area’s power grid to weather disruptions, or even its susceptibility to targeted attacks on power delivery systems. The best way to keep all this information straight is to use a threat assessment template to ensure that you think of everything.

Step 2. Gather contact information

The most essential part of emergency management is communication. After all, if you can’t communicate, there may be people who remain in the dark about the outage—especially if you have distributed employees and vendors or customers who might also be impacted. And you can’t communicate if you don’t know how to reach the right people, so dedicate a section of your response plan to emergency communication. Ensure you have multiple ways of reaching your employees, from phone calls and text messages to email and mobile app notifications. Remember to include phone numbers for local resources like the police, fire department, EMS, and local news to help you stay connected and supported by your community.

Step 3. Build an emergency response team

Creating an emergency response team is vital to efficiently handle a blackout. Begin by appointing a designated leader who will oversee the implementation of the plan. This leader should possess strong decision-making skills and the ability to remain calm under pressure. Additionally, identify key roles and responsibilities within the team, such as personnel responsible for communication, safety, equipment, and facilities. The exact roles your company might activate during a power outage emergency response plan may differ, but these are the most common:

  • Incident commander – You can think of this person as the CEO of your emergency response. Their responsibility is to oversee the entire operation and ensure everyone else is doing their jobs.
  • Evacuation route guides – In the event of a power outage, anyone in a dark workplace needs to be led to safety. Designated guides should be equipped with flashlights and reflective vests to help aid evacuees.
  • Communication commander – This person oversees the emergency mass notification system and keeps everyone in the know.
  • Energy leader – This person’s job is to repair or restore the supply of power to electrical equipment, even if only in a limited way. Depending on your organization’s plan and resources, this person will be in charge of emergency lighting, emergency generators, battery distribution, or setting up a secondary workplace in a location with power.

Step 4. Take stock of resources

Power outages are fundamentally a question of resources and infrastructure. In order to plan for outages effectively, you must know what alternative resources you already have on hand. Questions to ask yourself include:

  • If so, what is their wattage capacity?
  • How many systems and devices could they run?
  • Does your workplace have battery-powered emergency lighting?
  • Do employees have personal flashlights or other illuminators?
  • Depending on your climate, what heating, cooling, and air filtration options would you have without grid power? Do you have natural gas-based heating?
  • What emergency supplies, like food, drinking water, and first aid kits, do you have available?

Pro Tip: Utility companies recommend not only preparing for power outages, but also for extreme temperatures that can accompany them. Teach heat safety and cold weather safety in tandem with power outage preparedness.

Step 5. Formulate and document the emergency plan

Now comes the fun part: devising the strategy you’ll use to respond to power outages. This can be broken down into a few sub-steps:

1. Prepare a comprehensive checklist of essential steps

Outline the specific tasks and procedures required to mitigate the impact of a power outage on your business. Include actions such as identifying critical equipment, establishing emergency power sources, and implementing communication protocols.

2. Outline procedures for immediate response and prioritization

Define the steps to be taken immediately after a power outage occurs. This may involve shutting down non-essential systems or those that would automatically restart upon receiving power, securing sensitive data, and activating backup power sources.

3. Address employee safety and evacuation protocols

Develop protocols to ensure the safety and well-being of your employees during a power outage. Establish evacuation procedures, designate assembly areas, and provide training in emergency response protocols, especially related to public safety issues like avoiding downed power lines. Plan to install battery-powered emergency lighting to allow for safer navigation in the dark and ensure your first aid training regimen is up to date. Test CO meters to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning. Ensure that fire protection measures like extinguishers and sprinklers are in working order, as some of the issues that cause power outages can also start fires, like shorted electrical circuits.

4. Establish protocols for backup power and generator usage

Determine the capacity and requirements for backup power sources, such as generators. Create guidelines for their installation, operation, and maintenance.

5. Devise a communication strategy

Establish a communication strategy to keep employees, customers, and stakeholders informed during power outages. Utilize multiple channels, such as text messages, emails, and social media, to relay updates and instructions. You can even use your emergency response plan to write out message templates, saving time during an emergency.

6. Document the plan and ensure it’s accessible

Create a detailed document that includes all aspects of your power outage emergency response plan. Make sure it is easily accessible to all relevant parties, both digitally and in physical form. You’ll need to make sure safety leaders, department heads, and other company stakeholders have a copy of this plan and have a chance to sign off on it.

Step 6. Test the response plan and train your employees

Developing a plan is only the first step. Regular emergency drills and simulations are essential to test the effectiveness of the response plan. Conduct these exercises to identify any gaps or areas for improvement. Additionally, train designated employees in their roles and responsibilities on the emergency response team. This training will ensure a smooth plan execution during actual power outage situations. Regularly review and update the plan based on lessons learned from drills and real-world events.

Pro Tip: A great low-cost way to practice your power outage emergency response is with tabletop exercises .

Step 7. Plan for post-outage recovery

After any short or extended power outage, swift recovery is essential to minimize further disruptions. Take the following steps:

  • Assess damages and losses : Evaluate the impact of the power outage on your business. Assess personal injuries, physical damages, financial losses, and any potential data breaches or compromised systems.
  • Restore operations and infrastructure : Develop a step-by-step plan for restoring operations and infrastructure. Prioritize critical systems and equipment to minimize downtime and initiate repairs or replacements as necessary.

Since power outages can occur unexpectedly, implementing year-round power emergency preparedness measures is crucial. Consider the following actions:

  • Maintain backup power sources and generators : Regularly inspect and service backup power sources and generators to ensure they are in optimal condition when needed. Develop a maintenance schedule and perform routine checks on all backup equipment.
  • Stock up on emergency supplies : Keep a stock of emergency kits full of essential emergency supplies such as flashlights, batteries, first aid materials, and non-perishable food items. Ensure these emergency supply kits are easily accessible to employees during power outages. Check their contents annually to ensure they’re topped up and the items are in good condition.
  • Establish relationships with local utility providers and emergency services : Foster relationships with local utility providers and emergency services. They can provide valuable support and updates during power outages, helping your business navigate challenging situations more effectively.
  • Accommodate remote work : For workers who spend most of their time behind a computer, continuing work can be as simple as bringing their laptop home or to another location. Even if your workers usually come to an office every day, consider supplying them with laptops they can take with them (as well as proper IT protections to avoid gaps in your network security) so that their work isn’t tied to the office’s power supply.

On the flip side, AlertMedia customers have reported that keeping in touch with remote employees during power outages can be challenging without the proper tools. Ensure you have an emergency mass notification system that can send multichannel notifications—that is, across multiple mediums, like voice call, text, email, desktop alerts, and more.

It doesn’t make sense (or money) to make the same mistake twice. Power outages provide valuable lessons that can inform future preparedness efforts. Here’s how you make sure each power emergency you face is less impactful than the last:

  • Document lessons learned : Analyze the performance of your power outage emergency response plan following each power outage event. Identify areas of improvement and make necessary adjustments to enhance preparedness for future incidents.
  • Update the plan based on new information and technologies : Incorporate new information, technologies, and best practices into your power outage emergency response plan. Stay up to date with industry standards and advancements to ensure the plan remains effective and relevant.
  • Share knowledge and best practices : Foster a culture of continuous improvement by sharing knowledge and best practices within your organization. Encourage employees to contribute their insights and ideas to enhance the power outage emergency response plan.

Fight (for) the Power

In today’s unpredictable world, power outages pose significant risks to businesses. By prioritizing preparedness and developing a comprehensive power outage emergency response plan, companies can minimize disruptions, protect their employees, and maintain essential operations. Implementing proactive strategies, conducting regular drills, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement will ensure your business is ready to handle power outages effectively and emerge stronger from such events.

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6 Steps to Creating an Effective Emergency Response Plan [+ Template]

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Crisis Communications Plans

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Identifying Audiences

Contact Information

Working with the media, message development, contact and information centers.

The need to communicate is immediate when an emergency occurs. Many different audiences must be reached with information specific to their interests and needs.

The crisis communications plan is an important component of a business’ preparedness program. A business must be able to respond promptly, accurately and confidently during an emergency in the hours and days that follow.

Identifying Audiences and How to Reach Them

There are many potential audiences that will want information during and following an incident; each has its own needs for information. The challenge is to identify potential audiences, determine their need for information and then identify who within the business is best able to communicate with that audience.

Possible audiences include:

  • Government officials and regulators

Contact information for each audience should be compiled in advance and be accessible during an incident. Existing information such as customer, supplier and employee contact information may be exportable from existing databases. Include as much information for each contact as possible (e.g., organization name, contact name, business telephone number, cell number, fax number and email address). Lists should be updated regularly and secured.

News media will be on scene or calling to obtain details if the incident is serious. There may be numerous requests for information from local, regional or national media. The challenge of managing large numbers of requests for information, interviews and public statements can be overwhelming.

Determine in advance who will speak to the media and prepare that spokesperson with talking points, so they can speak clearly and effectively in terms that can be easily understood.

Prioritizing requests for information and development of press releases and talking points can assist with the need to communicate quickly and effectively.

One of the goals of crisis communication planning is to make sure that messages are consistent. Each audience will seek information that is specific to them during and following an incident.

Messages can be pre-scripted as templates with blanks to be filled in when information is available and tailored to each incident. Pre-scripted messages can be developed, approved by the management team, and stored on a remotely accessible server for quick editing and release when needed.

There initially may be limited information about the incident or its potential impacts. Having a coordinated review and distribution process allows the business to adapt to changing information. As days and weeks go by, this messaging will transition from reacting to the incident to moving toward recovery. Messaging for each step of this process also can be developed in advance.

Communications before, during and following an emergency is bi-directional. Stakeholders or audiences will ask questions and request information. The business will answer questions and provide information.

Contact and information centers receive requests for information from each audience and disseminate information to each audience.

  • The contact center fields inquiries from customers, suppliers, the news media and others. The contact center should be properly equipped and staffed by personnel to answer requests for information. The staff working within the contact center should be provided with scripts and a “frequently asked questions” (FAQ) document to answer questions consistently and accurately.
  • The information center consists of existing staff and technologies (e.g., website, call center, bulletin boards, etc.) that field requests for information from customers, employees and others during normal business hours. The information center and its technologies can be used to push information out to audiences and post information for online reading.

Last Updated: 09/07/2023

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For the latest incoming storm projections, see : National Weather Service Forecast

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LA City Disaster Recovery Services

Servicios de Recuperación de Desastres de la Ciudad de Los Ángeles

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State of California and LA County Disaster Recovery Services

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR HOMEOWNERS, RENTERS AND BUSINESS OWNERS:

If you suffered damages from the February rainstorm, please fill out this damage assessment survey hosted by LA County.   Completing this online survey will help LA County collect information on estimated business- or home-owner repair costs from early February storm damage. The data will be used to determine if cumulative damages are enough to qualify our area for state- or federally-funded disaster assistance. This form does not guarantee eligibility and is not an application for assistance. However, it is the County's first requested step. Completion of this survey does not guarantee a disaster declaration will be received or that County residents will be eligible to receive assistance. 

LA City residents are encouraged to connect with MyLA311 if they require assistance.

NOTE: The details herein about disaster service providers is for general informational purposes only. It is offered in good faith; however, the City of Los Angeles ("City") makes no representation, promise or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of the contents herein. All references are for the convenience of the public and do not constitute an endorsement or recommendation. The City is not responsible or liable for any loss or damage incurred as a result of the use of or reliance on the services provided by organizations not a part of the City.

American Red Cross

In the immediate aftermath of a disaster, the Red Cross helps to meet the urgent needs of those affected and focuses on providing safe shelter, food, emotional support, first aid, and health services. 

The Red Cross also plays a critical role in helping families and communities recover in the weeks and months after a disaster. To help communities recover, the Red Cross often brings groups and agencies together to plan recovery activities.

Residents affected by this month's rain event and in need of Red Cross disaster assistance can visit RedCross.org/Get-Help .

City Response

Mud and Debris Flow

City agencies are responding to reports of mudslides and debris flows particularly along canyon roads and hillsides.

Building and Safety Inspectors are assessing homes near the affected areas, and the Bureau of Engineering team has assessed the need for restoration of slope stability and has already begun to reconstruct the affected hillsides.

Department of Transportation Traffic Officers have been deployed to support multiple closures and direct drivers away from impacted areas. As recovery work continues, drivers are advised to avoid canyon roads which may be subject to sudden and intermittent closures as city crews work on assessment and repairs.

Heavy winds and rain caused multiple power outages across Los Angeles. Thanks to the work of LADWP crews, more than 100,000 households have had their power restored since the start of the storm. Angelenos can report outages at LADWP.com/Outages .

Stormwater Capture

In collaboration with LA County Flood Control and Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, preliminary estimates show that more than 7 billion gallons of stormwater have been captured in Los Angeles alone since the beginning of Sunday’s storm event.

Shelter Response During The Storm

With the alert of severe weather in the forecast for our region, Los Angeles established a coordinated approach in partnership with the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority to outreach and connect with unhoused Angelenos across the City. Targeted outreach was done in the waterways and high flooding areas, including in the L.A. River and Sepulveda Basin. We secured hundreds of hotel vouchers and opened additional recreation and park shelters to keep unhoused Angelenos safe and dry with access to supportive services.

The work doesn’t stop there, we are shifting the way we recover by including a plan after the storm with the goal of connecting unhoused Angelenos in a shelter with ongoing services and interim housing options. Visit  Ready.LACity.gov to learn how you can plan for any emergency and create an emergency kit for any disaster. 

Frequently Asked Questions After The Storm

Angelenos can report damage to 311. The Department of Building and Safety has been activated to go out and assess reports of damage.

If my house has damages, where can I receive assistance now?

Angelenos are recommended to contact their insurance company and document their damage. Document every loss and expense. Take photos, keep receipts and contact your Insurance Agent. A recovery plan can take these things into account and help you make the most of your time and money.  

How do I find out which roads are closed?

The city maintains an Interactive Road Closure map .

What if my backyard is stable, but I'm worried it's about to collapse? Where can I find help?

We recommend Angelenos to seek advice from a geotechnical expert. A professional can advise on the best ways to prevent or reduce landslide risk without creating further hazards.

My house was yellow or red tagged, what do I do? Where do I get updates from?

If evacuated, return home only when it has been indicated and safe to do so. The Department of Building and Safety will continue to communicate with impacted households until repairs have been completed. Find more information on how to determine when there is a threat of flash flooding and debris flows  here .

What if there is a broken pipe in my apartment or home?

Floodwaters damage materials, leaving mud, silt and contaminants that can promote the growth of  mold . You need to  safely and thoroughly dry your home to reduce these hazards and the damage they cause. LADWP recommends having an emergency supply of water in case the pipe infrastructure in your area receives damage during an emergency. Find disaster preparedness resources from LADWP   here .

How can I prepare for future flooding?

During the storm season, local Fire Stations offer free sand and sandbags. Find your local station  here .

How to report a power outage?

  • 1-800-DIAL DWP (1-800-342-5397) Available 24/7 for emergency and outage calls
  • Hearing/Speech Impaired (TDD) (1-800-432-7397)

Submit a Request to 311

Russia-Ukraine latest: Alexei Navalny's wife shares goodbye photograph as Russians defy authorities to pay tribute

Yulia Navalnaya has shared a photo of her and her late husband on social media after his death was confirmed. Watch live below as mourners lay flowers in tribute to the Putin critic in Moscow - in defiance of the authorities after hundreds of arrests.

Sunday 18 February 2024 23:53, UK

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  • Alexei Navalny's wife shares photo and message online
  • Wave of political arrests in Russia as 400 detained at Navalny memorials
  • Putin congratulates troops after 'important victory' over Avdiivka
  • Deborah Haynes: Zelenskyy needs weapons, not hero-worship
  • Sean Bell: Was a lack of ammunition to blame for the fall of Avdiivka?
  • Navalny obituary: The man Putin refused to name
  • Explained: What is 'sudden death syndrome'? | What's happened to Putin's other opponents?

In the days since Alexei Navalny's death, people have kept coming to lay flowers at two sites in the heart of Moscow that commemorate the victims of Soviet repression.

One is the Solovetsky Stone, right beside the FSB's headquarters on Lubyanka Square; the other is the so-called 'Wall of Grief', a more recent memorial site.

Police tell them to move on, not to linger.

After close to 400 arrests in cities across the country, people are aware they risk being detained if they outstay their welcome or do so much as unfurl a banner or photo of Navalny.

Read our Moscow correspondent Diana Magnay 's full account here...

It is more important than ever talk about Ukraine at the BAFTAs, 20 Days In Mariupol filmmaker Mstyslav Chernov said at the awards ceremony.

The documentary - which won the film not in the English language award tonight - tells the story of the 20 days Chernov spent with his colleagues from the Associated Press in Mariupol after Russia began its war on Ukraine.

He said he is "grateful" they were nominated in a category that would make the film visible to people who might not usually watch documentaries.

"Still I keep thinking about Ukraine, I keep thinking about what is happening there right now," he said.

"And the only comfort to me, that I'm not filming out there… is that we give voice to Ukrainians.

"We keep reminding the world about what is happening right now."

With the frontline city of Avdiivka falling to Russian forces this weekend, he added it is more important than ever to keep Ukraine in the public's consciousness.

"We have to make sure that we keep reminding everyone," he added.

"This is for the people of Mariupol, they have saved our lives.

"They have helped us every step of the way. This film is about them and this is for them."

An investigation has been launched into alleged shootings by Russian forces on eight unarmed Ukrainian soldiers. 

The prosecutor's office in Donetsk region referred to information around "the execution of six prisoners" at a position in Avdiivka - a city Russia claims it has taken over after months of intense fighting.

All six were "seriously injured and awaiting evacuation", according to the prosecutor's office.

Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne quoted military spokesman Dmytro Lykhoviy as saying there is "still no possibility to confirm or refute" the killings at Avdiivka, as an investigation is ongoing. 

It would not be the first time Russia had committed war crimes, he added.

Two 'shot dead' on video

Another two captured soldiers were reportedly shot from close range in the village of Vesele, which is in the same region as Avdiivka.

Video taken by a drone showed a Russian soldier shooting two captured Ukrainian soldiers at close range at the village of Vesele, the prosecutor's office said.

"Not wanting to leave the prisoners alive, the occupier kills them with automatic weapons," the office added, without saying when the incident had occurred.

Earlier today, the official Telegram channel of Ukraine's land forces shared video apparently shot from a drone of people in uniform in a narrow trench.

An armed person - whom the post identifies as Russian - approaches two uniformed people identified as Ukrainian and apparently shoots both.

The Ukrainians do not appear to defend themselves and are in a narrow trench as another soldier approaches and appears to grab them.

The two injured people are seen collapsing on to their sides in the trench, twitching. 

The other person is then seen standing back briefly, before appearing to shoot them again.

This footage has not been independently verified.

Russia's defence ministry has not commented on the allegations, but has previously denied it has killed prisoners of war.

People continue to lay flowers at by the Solovetsky Stone, in Moscow, which is a monument commemorating victims of political oppression.

That's despite warnings by Russian authorities, who say visitors should not spend too long by the memorial.

More than 400 people have been arrested at events in memory of Alexei Navalny, according to rights group OVD-Info.

Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen have "expressed their outrage" over the death of Alexei Navalny.

The pair also discussed Ukraine in a call today, just days ahead of the second anniversary of Russia's invasion.

A Downing Street spokeswoman said they "underscored the importance of providing continuing support to the Ukrainian people".

"The prime minister welcomed the recent announcement that the EU will provide €50bn (£42.7bn) support to Ukraine, and outlined the work the UK is doing through our security cooperation agreement," she added.

"The prime minister and President Von der Leyen expressed their outrage at the death of Alexei Navalny, and underscored the utmost importance of holding those responsible within the Russian system to account."

Estonia's prime minister says she is "not afraid" after Russia issued a warrant for her arrest.

Kaja Kallas -  a vocal critic of Russia - was among several Baltic politicians placed on Moscow's wanted list last week for destroying Soviet-era monuments.

"It is meant to intimidate and make me refrain from the decisions that I would otherwise make," she said on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.

"But it's Russia's playbook. It's nothing surprising and we are not afraid."

Ms Kallas has used her high profile to drum up support for Ukraine and this has led to speculation she may be in line for a senior role within the EU - possibly as the next foreign policy chief after elections in June.

She believes that speculation is contributing to Russia's aggression towards her.

"It's hard to be popular," she said ironically. 

"The Russians have also seen that, and that's why they issued the arrest warrant to really emphasise the biggest argument against me, that I am a provocation to Russia."

When asked whether she was interested in any future European role, she said: "We are not there yet. I'm the prime minister of Estonia."

The politicians risk arrest only if they cross the Russian border, otherwise declaring them wanted has no real consequences.

Estonia was once part of the Soviet Union, but is now a member of the EU and NATO.

Alexei Navalny's wife will attend the EU's foreign affairs council on Monday.

That's according to the bloc's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.

"On Monday, I will welcome Yulia Navalnaya at the EU Foreign Affairs Council," he posted on X.

EU Ministers will send a "strong message of support", he added. 

With more than 400 people believed to have been detained across Russia for paying tribute to opposition leader Alexei Navalny, here's some insight into what happens to them next.

Courts in St Petersburg, where the majority of arrests are believed to have occurred, have ordered 42 of those detained on Friday to serve from one to six days in jail, while nine others were fined, court officials said.

In Moscow, at least six people were ordered to serve 15 days in jail, according to prominent rights group OVD-Info. 

One person was also jailed in the southern city of Krasnodar and two more in the city of Bryansk, the group said.

The figure of over 400 arrests also came from OVD-Info this morning, but that number is expected to rise as people have been seen continuing to lay flowers in Mr Navalny's memory.

By Sean Bell , military analyst

The fall of Avdiivka has handed Russia its most important battlefield victory since it seized Bakhmut after nine months of gruelling attritional warfare. 

But was a lack of Ukrainian ammunition to blame for this battlefield loss, and is this rare Russian success the start of a dangerous new phase of the war?

Avdiivka has been the scene of some of the fiercest and most bloody battles of the war.  Russian forces have laid siege to the small Ukrainian city for the past four months.

The Ukrainian forces have been significantly overmatched by Russian troops, with some reports suggesting that areas of the frontline had 10 times as many Russian soldiers as Ukrainian.  

The Russian air force has also been playing an increasingly prominent role in the battle, taking advantage of the relatively close proximity of the sanctuary of Russian airspace and delivering more than 60 bombs a day on to Ukrainian frontline positions.

Ukraine's decision to retreat from the front-line city appears justified militarily, but that has not stopped Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Joe Biden highlighting Ukraine's shortage of weapons and the increasingly critical nature of further delays to securing the $60bn of aid currently delayed by the US Congress. 

Although Ukraine will be keen to secure long-term funding support from the US, the critical Ukrainian need at this time is weapons and ammunition.  

The EU has approved ongoing funding support for Ukraine, but converting this commitment into ammunition available to front-line soldiers is a challenge.  

For the past two years, the majority of the weapons provided to Ukraine have been sourced from the war chests of Western nations. However, those stocks are now running low, and there are no ready supplies available commercially.  

Activating individual nations' defence industrial base to design, build and deliver replacement weapons is one of the only ways to meet Ukraine's future military requirements.

The West has successfully sourced some replacement ammunition - such as artillery shells - but these tend to be used in attritional warfare which favours the larger force, so this is not Ukraine's priority.  

In contrast, Ukraine has seized the initiative in this war through the West providing high-technology, precision strike weapons such as the UK Storm Shadow missile.  

This weapon has proven very effective at attacking Russian targets in occupied Ukraine, but stocks are running low - Ukraine want more.  

However, this missile is 30 years old, and many of the components are obsolete, so industry cannot easily provide replacement stock. 

The West could provide Ukraine with more modern weapons from its inventory or directly from the manufacturers; however, technology is the West's asymmetric advantage on the battlefield.  

There is always a risk that some of the West's donated weapons will end up on the black market and eventually in the hands of the Russians or Chinese, and the West cannot afford to compromise its own national security.  

As a result, the only sustainable way to provide Ukraine with enduring military support is through a coordinated investment in the international defence industrial base. However, the investment, development, production and testing process all takes time - which Ukraine does not have.

Although Russia has achieved a rare victory by seizing Avdiivka, its military forces suffered very high casualties during the 4-month siege of the city.  

Offensive action in the winter is difficult; the cold weather is unforgiving, there is limited natural cover from leaves and foliage, and the ground is frozen, making it hard to dig foxholes.  

Why was Avdiivka such a priority for Russia?

24 February marks the two-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and Vladimir Putin will have been very keen to demonstrate battlefield success to boost the moral of its forces.   

Mr Putin will also want to demonstrate progress in his "special military operation" in advance of the Russian presidential elections being held next month.  

However, most analysts believe that neither Russia nor Ukraine have sufficient military resources to mount a significant offensive anytime soon, and that the coming year could be characterised by a series of smaller indecisive actions along the frontline.

But, if the West fails to address Ukraine's desperate need for munitions, that will create a window of opportunity for Russian forces, and one that Mr Putin might be tempted to exploit.

The body of Alexei Navalny, which his family and allies have been trying to locate since Friday, has been found, according to reports.

Novaya Gazeta Europe has reported his body is in the morgue of the Salekhard District Clinical Hospital. 

It also reported that its sources said no autopsy had yet been performed as of Saturday.

Novaya reported his body was initially taken to the town of Labytnangi, about 20 miles away from the penal colony where he died, before it was transferred to the hospital in the regional capital of Salekhard later on Friday.

Novaya Gazeta Europe is a project launched by newspaper staff after Novaya Gazeta, Russia's leading independent newspaper, suspended its work in 2022 under government pressure.

Mr Navalny's family and allies say they have been "driven around in circles" by Russian authorities while attempting to locate his body.

Kira Yarmysh, the Russian opposition leader's spokesperson, previously said Mr Navalny's mother had been told by a prison official that her son's body had been taken to the nearby city of Salekhard as part of a probe into his death.

But when she and Mr Navalny's lawyers arrived at the morgue, it was closed, and workers said the body was not there.

Hours later, Ms Yarmysh said lawyers for the politician were told Mr Navalny's body would not be handed over to his relatives until an investigation into his death had been completed.

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    The work doesn't stop there, we are shifting the way we recover by including a plan after the storm with the goal of connecting unhoused Angelenos in a shelter with ongoing services and interim housing options. Visit Ready.LACity.gov to learn how you can plan for any emergency and create an emergency kit for any disaster.

  25. Russia-Ukraine latest: Putin heralds 'important victory' over Avdiivka

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