Barry. Humberto. Karen. Wendy.
You haven’t met them yet; but come summer, you just might. These are some of the 21 names chosen for this year’s storms. The Weather Channel recently released its hurricane outlook for 2019. A total of 14 named storms, seven hurricanes and three major hurricanes are expected this season. The good news? We should not face as many storms as 2018. The bad news? It’s still above average, and it doesn’t mean it will be any less dangerous. Case in point, Subtropical Storm Andrea became the fifth tropical storm in 2019 before Hurricane Season officially starts on June 1.
It’s hard to imagine gearing up for another hurricane season when many are still recovering from Hurricane Michael. However, there are some steps your team can take now to prepare.
- Create a disaster recovery plan. As the old saying goes, “fail to plan; plan to fail.” In the aftermath of a disaster, getting your business back online is crucial to survival. According to a report from FEMA, 40 percent of businesses do not reopen following a disaster. On top of that, another 25 percent fail within one year. Having a disaster recovery plan can help your business avoid becoming a statistic. From business continuity to records safekeeping, SRS has walked many companies through this process.
- Go digital. If your office only uses paper records, you could be at serious risk come hurricane season. Since doctors are required to keep medical records for seven years, the onus is on the physician’s office to recreate any records destroyed, even if by a natural disaster. This is an extremely costly and painstaking process. If this is a concern for your office, consider a move from paper to digital record keeping. SRS has lots of experience in helping offices transition at any stage of the process. From helping you pick out an EMR or CRM system to implementing it by deciding what to scan and what to store for a “scan-on-demand” option, SRS has helped many companies make the most of their records databases.
- Purge old records. Many offices claim to have “gone digital” and yet still have old records taking up valuable office space. When clients hire SRS to do a purge, we bring secure document shredding services right to your business’s door with the option to witness the secure destruction of your files. Our mobile shredding trucks can shred up to 6,000 pounds of paper per hour. No option is more secure and comforting than having your files destroyed at your location, while watching the entire process.
- Consider “vault storage” for hard drives or priceless heirlooms. Let’s face it. Some items you just can’t digitize. Does your business have back up hard drives that must be kept offsite? Or are there precious heirlooms such as first edition manuscripts and photographs? We apply the same security and logistics advantages of our record storage business to our asset management business. Whether you need specialty storage that is climate controlled or ambient temperature for your assets, or state-of-the-art fireproof vaults, we have the space and processes to manage your inventory.
- It’s never too late. If you are unable to enact any of these four strategies, and disaster strikes – or if you are still dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Michael– it’s not too late. SRS can help! In fact, just last week, we helped one client deal with records that have been molding since the hurricane last October. With some creativity and a lot of elbow grease (plus some hazmat suits), we were able to solve his issue and destroy the moldy records. But beware – moldy, soggy records and post-disaster cleanup efforts are very expensive and very time consuming. While it’s never too late and we are experts at finding creating solutions, it’s always better to be prepared. In the aftermath of Hurricane Michael, SRS employees rolled up our sleeves to help with the recovery. We chainsawed trees, hauled away debris, and helped our community get back on its feet. Know that SRS is here to help before, during, and after hurricane season.
