Disaster Readiness

Is your mid-size business prepared to recover from a man-made or natural disaster? Find out Thursday, April 23, at a free Emergency Preparedness Conference for Businesses at the Kaiser Family Foundation, 1330 G Street.
 
More than 40% of businesses that experience a disaster never reopen, and 60% eventually go out of business within two years. This full-day conference, from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm, will provide information on what businesses can do now to prepare for an emergency, reopen and keep cash flow coming following a disaster; secure proper insurance to cover staff and customers; protect data and information technology; and seek assistance from federal agencies. The conference also will focus on developing a Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP).
 
Speakers will include Darrell Darnell, director of the DC Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency (HSEMA); Eugene Cornelius Jr., acting regional administrator, Region III, US Small Business Administration; and Carolyn Gorman, vice president of the Insurance Information Institute. Luis Enrique Yepez Jr., vice president of Massachusetts-based Mainstream Global, Inc., will share his company’s experience recovering from a natural disaster. The company was flooded completely in 2006 when the Merrimack River rose, but it recovered and went on to see a 50% increase in its revenues.
 
Inclusion Research will conduct the conference, hosted by the DC Homeland Security Emergency Management Agency. In addition, DC HSEMA will offer a series of free Emergency Preparedness Workshops for small businesses through May. These two-hour workshops will be held in multiple locations across the city. To register for the conference and the workshops, visit www.dccommunitypreparedness.org, or call 202.338.7158, extension 212.