September marks National Preparedness Month. With hurricane season halfway through and winter just around the corner, there is no better time to prepare yourself, family and workplace for emergencies and disasters. Emergencies and disasters can be unexpected and devastating. That is why preparation is imperative. At the Fallston Group, we believe the more prepared you are, the better you respond and quicker you recover from such situations.
What is an emergency or disaster?
An emergency or disaster is an unforeseen situation that threatens yourself and others, including natural disasters, a pandemic, or an act of terrorism. These include:
- Floods
- Hurricanes
- Tornadoes
- Fires
- Extreme heat
- Drought
- Power loss
- Earthquakes
- Winter storms
- Chemical spills
- Toxic gas releases
What should you do?
FEMA’s Ready campaign offers four steps to follow for emergency preparedness.
- Be Informed
- Make a Plan
- Build a Kit
- Get Involved
In the workplace
Emergency preparedness is just as important in your business as it is in your home. Employers should develop and enact an emergency action plan or preparedness program in the workplace. In order to create an effective program, employers should follow the following five steps:
- Program management involves the organization, development and administration of your preparedness program. Leadership and commitment are necessary in building and maintaining an up-to-date program.
- Planning includes gathering information about hazards and risks specific to your workplace and examining ways to prevent these situations before they occur.
- Implementation involves the actual drafting and creation of a preparedness plan. This plan should address resource management, emergency response, crisis communications, business continuity, information technology, employee assistance, incident management and training.
- Testing and exercises allow you to test your plan and gather pertinent data to evaluate your program.
- Program improvement involves the identification of areas to be reviewed and changed for the future based on test and exercise results.
For more information and resources on emergency preparedness and specific details for preparedness plans in the workplace, visit Ready.
Image by CBSMiami
