FLORIDA SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER AT IRSC
SBDC NETWORK URGES BUSINESS OWNERS TO
HAVE A PLAN TO DEAL WITH HURRICANE DAMAGE
20
TCBusiness.com
The Florida SBDC Network, the state’s
principal provider of small business assistance,
urges small business owners to
prepare for the 2021 Atlantic hurricane
season, which began June 1 and extends
through November.
According to a forecast by the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,
this year’s Atlantic hurricane season is
predicted to be above normal, with a likely
range of 13-20 named storms, of which six
to 10 could become hurricanes and three
to five could become major hurricanes.
The Florida SBDC Network encourages
small businesses to prepare for hurricane
season by developing a disaster preparedness
plan.
“With another active season predicted
this year and the ongoing challenges of COVID,
all small businesses should take time
now to develop a preparedness plan,” Greg
Britton, CEO of the Florida SBDC Network,
said. “No storm should be taken lightly and
all small businesses owners should prepare
each year no matter the forecast.”
Businesses should consider several elements
in preparing for a disaster. Not only
is it important to protect staff, the building,
data and inventory, it is also critical
to prepare a plan to continue operations
following the disaster.
A good plan may include provisions to relocate
to a predetermined site; retrieve data,
including employee, customer and vendor
records; and set up a way to operate efficiently
with a smaller staff of key individuals.
The Florida SBDC also strongly encourages
businesses to back up data and ensure
they have access to important files, such as
tax records, legal, and financial documents.
RESPONSE ASSISTANCE
As a principal responder in the state’s
Emergency Support Function 18 for Business
& Industry, the Florida SBDC Network
helps small businesses prepare and
recover from disasters.
Through the network’s service offering,
professionally certified business consultants
can help small business owners
develop comprehensive business continuity,
emergency preparedness and disaster
recovery plans at no cost.
The Florida SBDC also offers Bizaster, a
free mobile disaster assistance app. Bizaster,
available in both English and Spanish for
Android and iOS, features risk assessments,
customizable checklists and other resources.
Florida SBDCs also offer training on
disaster preparedness, tips and resources.
In the event of a disaster, Florida SBDC
disaster specialists help affected businesses
prepare disaster loan applications.
The network will also deploy its mobile
assistance centers into communities for
affected businesses to receive on-site
assistance with disaster loans and other
post-disaster challenges.
Greg Britton – Florida SBDC Network CEO
PREPAREDNESS RESOURCES
• For more information regarding the
Florida SBDC’s preparedness and recovery
services and Bizaster app, go to floridasbdc.
org/services/business-continuation.
• For a list of preparedness resources,
including tips for assembling a business
ready “Records-to-Go” box, visit florida
sbdc.org/services/business-continuation/
preparedness/.
• Visit FloridaDisaster.org — the state’s official
source of information for individuals
and businesses from the Florida Division
of Emergency Management.
• Visit FloridaDisaster.biz — the Florida
Department of Economic Opportunity
website providing businesses access to
critical information before, during and
after a disaster.
• For a hurricane preparedness checklist
and other resources from the Small Business
Administration, go to www.sba.gov.
For more information, please visit www.
FloridaSBDC.org. If you are a small business
owner on the Treasure Coast, contact
Florida SBDC at IRSC to assist with your hurricane
preparedness plan; email inquiries to
fsbdc@irsc.edu or call 772.336.6285. v
BY NANCY DAHLBERG
IRSC
The Florida SBDC Mobile Assistance Center MAC deploys throughout Florida following a disaster.
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