It is late August and as most Floridians know, the height of hurricane season. While employees of Snowbird are aware of the dangers during hurricane season in south Florida, few have thought about the preparations that should have been put in place BEFORE the company moved into the new offices. Employees begin the workweek with high expectations; the company is expanding and the Miami office will allow sales and marketing personnel to expand their reach throughout the southeast.
SITUATION:
Monday-10am: the NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE (NOAA) issues a hurricane watch for the Miami metro area, Ft. Lauderdale and north Broward County. By the afternoon, a hurricane warning has been issued. The hurricane is traveling from the central Caribbean towards the southeast coast of Florida.
Tuesday-9am: the NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE (NOAA) is announcing that the hurricane is gaining force and speed and is expected to make landfall in the Miami metro area by Thursday.
Employees are starting to panic, as they realize that their offices are not prepared; they do not have weather radios, planned evacuation routes, supplies in case they are stranded in their offices, or general information as to what to expect before, during and after the storm hits.
SOLUTION:
Snowbird could have been better prepared through simple planning as well as having a complete understanding of the geographic threats that exist throughout the southeastern coast of the U.S. Firestorm’s book, Disaster Ready People for a Disaster Ready America would have helped Snowbird employees to become prepared for this hurricane. In addition, the book would have given them the essential tools that they require to safeguard their homes and families. The Virtual Briefing about Hurricane Season that the Preaction Alliancetm hosts at the beginning of hurricane season in early June would have informed them of what they needed to know, what they needed to have, and how to prepare.
As part of the Preaction Alliancetm membership, Snowbird would have had access to Safe and Secure TV Channel which provides timely information about pending threats. Snowbird could have contacted Firestorm, where an expert in hurricane preparedness would have responded within 24 hours and supplied them with guidance.