Many businesses have “continuity” plans for dealing with a natural disaster such as Hurricane Florence bearing down on North Carolina. But what about you as a person and your family? What’s your continuity plan to make sure your technology – from data to smartphones – is prepped to keep you connected to the world if disaster strikes?
As we grow increasingly more reliant on technology, a tech survival kit/action plan is essential.
Here are some ideas for a checklist to help you plan for power outages, flooding and other storm damage:
Make backups
- Not just on your PC but at a “cloud” site and/or on a portable hard drive
- Backing up to a portable hard drive leaves you open to the same storm-related dangers your computer faces.
- Cloud-based backup preserves your data and grants you secure access from anywhere.
Do you have a UPS? Portable generator?
- An uninterruptible power supply can help deal with electricity outages
- Have you thought about buying a portable generator to deal with an extended power outage?
Take photos
- Taking photos on your camera or cellphone to catalog every item in your home it could save you a lot of trouble if disaster strikes. Upload them to the cloud for extra protection.
Physical protection
- Be prepared to move your hardware in the event of flooding or other damage. But not having to worry about moving the gear is another reason to have your data backed up elsewhere or on a portable drive.
Tech essentials
From FEMA:
- Portable, battery-powered radio or television and extra batteries.
- Flashlight and extra batteries.
Have a “go” bag
- If you were to have to evacuate, have a bag ready for quick response.
- Be sure to include your chargers, including those that are car-capable.
Low-tech communication plan
- Here’s a hard-copy suggestion from FEMA:
“Your family may not be together when disaster strikes, so plan how you will contact one another. Think about how you will communicate in different situations.
“Complete a contact card for each family member. Have family members keep these cards handy in a wallet, purse, backpack, etc. You may want to send one to school with each child to keep on file.
“Pick a friend or relative who lives out-of-state for household members to notify they are safe.”
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