Hurricane preparedness for your business is crucial, and the Tomlin Team wants you to have the following steps in mind this season to assist in the safeguarding of your commercial property.
Step 1: Protect Property
- Remove any branches or trees adjacent to your building that could potentially fall and cause damage
- Sandbag any areas that are subject to flooding
- Relocate any valuable or fragile possessions
- Secure electronics such as computers and other office equipment
- If possible, turn off all utilities prior to a hurricane making landfall,
Step 2: Protect important documents and information
- List and save all important contacts crucial to business operations, such as employees, brokers, banks, lawyers, accountants, suppliers etc.
- To avoid water damage, back-up documents that are not easily reproduced such as insurance documents, legal contracts, tax returns and financial records.
- Seal important documents in waterproof containers onsite, and if possible, in an alternate accessible off-site location.
Step 3: Prepare a Hurricane Kit for your office
Essential items include:
- Battery operated radio
- First Aid kit
- Flashlight, batteries and portable external powerbanks
- Tarps, plastic bags and duct tape
- Updated employee records
- Emergency services contact information, along with insurance company and Tomlin Team contact
We know that different sectors such as retailers, hotels and construction also require additional preparation.
All commercial properties will:
- Secure all doors and windows
- Turn off electricity to all non-essential equipment and shut down production processes
- Where applicable, ensure generators are working to preserve produce in the event of a power outage
Hotels might additionally:
- Ensure landscaping is well kept and any tree limbs that could become hazardous are trimmed
- Ensure gutters are cleaned to ensure proper drainage
- Where applicable, secure outdoor furniture like chairs, umbrellas, patio furniture etc.
- Secure motorized and non-motorized water sports equipment
- Notify the guests of the impending bad weather and advise them of the hotel’s safety procedures
Construction companies might:
- Secure and store all job site equipment and materials, including loose materials, trash, hazardous chemicals, signage
- Make sure backup generators are properly fueled.
- Secure all structures under construction by boarding up doors and windows, and adding sandbags around the perimeter of the job site
- Cancel deliveries to the jobsite until after the storm passes.
After the Hurricane
If there is damage to your property after a hurricane, follow these steps to make a claim.
