Editor’s Note: Last year, hurricane Irene caused significant flooding in several states along the East Coast well after it made landfall. Since last week was Small Business Administration week and this week is National Hurricane Preparedness Week, we wanted to share this perspective from a small business owner in Vermont. Mr. Crowl experienced first-hand how natural disasters can impact business owners, and has some lessons to share…


The views expressed by Patrick Crowl do not necessarily represent the official views of the United States, the Department of Homeland Security, or the Federal Emergency Management Agency. FEMA does not endorse any non-government organizations, entities, or services.

You can plan for a disaster all you want, but when it hits, you have to put your emotions aside and deal with it like you’re an ER doc. Each decision takes on critical importance.

Few of us in the town of Woodstock would have predicted that Hurricane Irene, which came up the East Coast at the end of last August, would have devastated much of Vermont like it did. But my partners and I, at our popular year round fresh market, the Woodstock Farmers Market, did take some precautions when we knew it was heading our way – we had our employees stay late the night before to move food into freezers and we closed the store down the day the storm was expected.

The next day I saw our entire store decimated, covered with mud. I was lucky to have a dedicated staff who did not abandon ship. I had about five staffers who “came to work” and even regular patrons who came by to clean up. People were making lunch, shoveling and mucking. It was surreal and it was very humbling.

Woodstock, Vt., May 23, 2012 -- Damages sustained by Hurricane Irene to Woodstock's Farmers Market.

We were determined to reopen. We had vendors to pay and a mortgage on the property. The market is the main livelihood for most of the store’s employees. We’re a significant part of the community. We needed to rebuild and get ourselves going again.

But how? I was very familiar with the statistic that only 25 percent of small businesses are able to survive after a disaster. But somehow we managed to reopen in time for Thanksgiving. It wasn’t easy. Over the course of the last year, I have thought about how we did it and have broken down the various stages of business recovery.

Woodstock, Vt., May 23, 2012 -- Damages sustained to the Woodstock Farmers Market following Hurricane Irene.

Phase 1 – Days 1 and 2 – Clean-up
Don’t delay what you have to do, take advantage of the momentum of the community right afterwards because things slow down after the adrenaline of the incident wears off, and people have to return to their own lives. If you can, work 12 to 14 hour days. Eight hours won’t cut it. There will be time later to rest. Your reputation is at stake. Your money is at stake.

Set up a command post and gather the right people together. Break down who does what. Don’t be afraid to delegate. Keep lists of who is doing what, and reward community volunteers.

Phase 2 – Days 2 and 3 – Continue the Momentum on the Money Trail
Register with FEMA and the SBA immediately and leave no stone unturned when it comes to other sources of funding. It was a challenge, but I knew I had to stay focused and positive. I would spend full days on the phone navigating the various bureaucracies. We had no manual. We read and reread all the flood insurance literature to make sure we knew the steps to take. We huddled early on with a group of close advisors and came up with a financial game plan.


Phase 3 – Days 3 through 7 – Fine-Tune Your Plan
Take care of your co-workers and staff. Make sure they apply for unemployment and they have access to any needed counseling. Property can be rebuilt, income can be brought back, but foremost make sure people are taken care of. Without them, you won’t be able to come back.

Then do a budget outline of what it will cost to rebuild. Flood expenses can include the cost of the cleanup, construction, new equipment, cost of the insurance adjustor, outstanding payables and any other miscellaneous costs. On the income side, we had to tally our savings, flood insurance proceeds, state economic loan, customer loans and gifts.

My Smartphone was my lifeline. It buzzed and it rang, constantly. Whenever I got an idea, I texted, called or emailed.

We lost all our computer files and many records. Luckily our main computer back up was saved as were many of the computers because before the floodwaters got too high, we carried them to a top floor. But next time, we’re going to make sure we keep a backup data “in the cloud.”

Be prepared to change your game plan. Things are moving a hundred miles an hour and everything changes in a day. We met every day, twice a day for information updates.

We followed the following matrix and updated it every week.

• Physical plant issues: cleanup; equipment tear out; rebuilding. 
• Financial issues: insurance, sources of funding 
• Human Resources: staff communications; unemployment; grief counseling 
• Marketing/PR: getting the word out; website communication; social media

It was from those meetings that we came up with the idea for our Irene Card program, which was essentially a prepaid shopping card. We offered a discount for cards over $1,000. This idea was a great way to generate money up front. We raised over $375,000 in a matter of weeks.

Phase 4 – After first week – Facing Reality
Your business is gone. Staff is gone. As many people return to their normal lives, you are alone. Keep going. Gather people for weekly meetings and check the matrix.

While we are now open, we still have a gap between what it actually cost to get ourselves back to where we were, versus the cost of the disaster. We were indeed underinsured for our contents, but our building flood insurance was a correct amount. I guess while you can’t plan for a flood, you can be better prepared.

Woodstock, Vt., May 24, 2012 -- Woodstock Farmers Market reopening following the temporarily closing due to needed renovations caused by Hurricane Irene.

Knowing what I know now, we have re-examined our flood policy and corrected. A relatively small price to pay for the peace of mind needed when you know Mother Nature could strike at any time.

Each year the Atlantic tropical season begins on June 1. Generally speaking, any given year during the Memorial Day weekend, employees at FEMA are “thinking” about the upcoming hurricane season…not actually “monitoring” a tropical system. However, this year we haven’t even reached June 1, and we’re already monitoring the second storm of the year. Late yesterday, the tropics developed Sub-Tropical Storm Beryl.

Because of the development of Beryl and the expected track, the National Weather Service has issued tropical storm watches and warning for areas of the southeast. The advisories are for Tropical Storm Warnings for the Volusia/Brevard County line in Florida to Edisto Beach, South Carolina; and Tropical Storm Watches for north of Edisto Beach to South Santee River, South Carolina.

With the impact focused on the southeastern U.S., FEMA, through our regional office in Atlanta, Ga., is closely monitoring Beryl. With tropical storm conditions expected to reach the warned area from northeastern Florida to South Carolina sometime Sunday, we have deployed a liaison to the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Fla., to support our Hurricane Liaison Team.

As tropical waves or tropical storms can bring heavy rains and high winds, we are urging coastal residents to monitor weather conditions by listening to your local radio and television news outlets or by listening to NOAA Weather Radio. You can check your local forecast at weather.gov/ & hurricanes.gov/ and on your phone at mobile.weather.gov & hurricanes.gov/mobile.

It’s vitally important that you take steps to prepare your property and family and you should take steps now to get prepared for potential severe weather. Visit Ready.gov/hurricanes (Listo.gov para español) to learn how to prepare your home and family for a hurricane or tropical storm, including building an emergency supply kit and creating a family emergency plan.

Everyone should also familiarize themselves with the terms that are used to identify a severe weather hazard and discuss with your family what to do if a tropical storm watch or warning is issued in your area. Terms used to describe severe tropical weather include the following:

• A Tropical storm watch means that tropical storm conditions are possible, in this case within 24 hours.
• A Tropical storm warning means that tropical storm conditions are expected within 36 hours.
• A Hurricane watch means that hurricane conditions are possible within 48 hours.
• A Hurricane warning means that hurricane conditions are expected within 36 hours. 

We’ll continue to monitor the storm and provide updates as it warrants, and if you are in the potential areas, please listen to local officials. We’ll also provide updates on Twitter and Facebook, so you can follow us there too.

Back in early April we blogged about a special visitor to FEMA.  At the time, Flat Stanley was making the rounds in Washington, DC and dropped in at FEMA headquarters to spend a little time with me.  Take a look at the latest meeting I had with Flat Stanley and what we have in mind for helping prepare everyone for hurricane season.
 

FEMA, through our Ready Campaign, is working in collaboration with Flatter World and the Flat Stanley Project to bring awareness to school aged children about the need to be prepared for emergencies and disasters and what they can do to help their families and loved ones to build more resilient households.

Children and their parents will soon be able to build their own FEMA Flat Stanley and share with their friends and classmates the steps they have taken to support preparedness throughout their homes, schools and communities.

Stay tuned for more information as Flat Stanley gets more and more involved.  And in the mean time, kids can find fun preparedness games and activities like word searches, crossword puzzles, comic strips and more at Ready.gov/kids.

Today, I joined our partners at the National Hurricane Center to release the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s outlook for the upcoming Atlantic hurricane season (June 1- November 30). Even though the season “officially” starts next week, we have already seen the first named storm, Alberto, develop in the Atlantic. Alberto serves as an invaluable reminder: as much as we can try to predict, nature and disasters will inevitably throw the unexpected our way.

While we can’t stop a tropical storm, hurricane, earthquake or other natural disaster from happening, there are actions we can all take to lessen the impact these unexpected events can have on our families, homes and businesses. Whatever the risks are in your area (especially those where hurricanes/tropical storms can have an impact), I encourage you to visit Ready.gov to learn about the three simple steps to getting prepared before an emergency. But maybe you already know the risks in your area, have already assembled a family emergency supply kit or recently reviewed your family’s emergency plan – then you can play a part in taking preparedness to the next level. Join us by pledging to prepare for emergencies and telling three of your relatives, friends, coworkers, or social media followers to do so as well.

The upcoming three day weekend could be a great opportunity to practice and share emergency preparedness. Here are a few ideas:

• If you will be in an area potentially impacted by hurricanes or tropical storms, review and talk about NOAA’s 2012 outlook for the season. Make sure friends and family know if they live in an evacuation zone and what their evacuation route is, in case local officials should give the order. 
• Before you head out for weekend travel, make sure your car or truck has emergency supplies, like blankets, water, an AM/FM radio, jumper cables, and a flash light with extra batteries. Then when you get to your destination, show it off to family and friends! 
• If you’re traveling by airplane, keeping a small first aid kit, flashlight, medication and extra cell phone charger with you could prove useful if your flight is delayed. (Other passengers could add these items to their carry-on luggage the next time they fly if they see you using your kit.) 
• During the day off, take a few minutes fill a “go-bag” with emergency supplies. Many of the items are probably already be around your home, then add any additional needed items to our family’s grocery list for the week. 
• Take 10 minutes with your family and practice your fire escape plan. After you’re done, posting a photo or status update to your social media accounts is a great way to spread the word and remind others to do the same.

And if you’re looking for more ideas or others ways people and organizations around the country are getting prepared for hurricane season, then you’re in luck. Next week is National Hurricane Preparedness Week, so FEMA and our partners will be talking about hurricane and tropical storm preparedness all week long on our blog, Twitter feed, Facebook page, and other online channels. So make a point to post your own updates about preparing for severe tropical weather, or you can even repost one from our sites!

I hope either of these three - the NOAA hurricane season outlook, upcoming three day weekend, or National Hurricane Preparedness Week – can act as starters for making your family, home, or business more prepared for emergencies as we move into the “official” hurricane season.