Latest Solar Flare Causes Outage Hype, But Poses Little Threat

The latest solar storm that started on Valentine’s Day this past Monday produced the largest flare since December 5, 2006. According to NASA it is not large enough to cause widespread outages, but will produce pretty light shows.

The type of flare produced was a type X2 Flare, with types M and X being the strongest class of flares, and are numbered from 1 through 9 with 9 being the strongest.

While outages from flares and solar storms are possible, this series does not seem powerful enough to cause any. Though it is possible that additional and stronger flares could occur, especially since we are nearing the beginning phase of this solar cycle and more flares will be coming.

I’ve recently noticed a large spike in the number of views I have been getting on past posts that discuss the potential for solar storms and solar flares to be devastating, so I thought it might be appropriate to create this post letting people know that in this latest series there is little to worry about.

If you are interested in the effects that these storms could have or have had in the past the following related past posts may be if interest to you:

Sun Spots, Solar Flares, and Geomagnetic Induced Currents Can Disrupt Your Business

Coronal Mass Ejection May Cause Disruptions, Being Called Solar Tsunami by Some

What Exactly Is Space Weather and Why You Should Care?

Is Your Business Prepared To Shelter In Place?

Does your business know how to handle a shelter in place situation? Chances are if you are like most businesses you do not currently have a plan or the supplies needed to shelter in place.

Fairly recently I was consulting with a client and asked if they had made any preparations or had plans to shelter in place. The response I got back was very interesting, "Sheltering in place, thats only for hospitals isn't it?" This told me all I needed to know about how adequate their planning was.

As a side note, here in the CA, Bay Area, Shelter In Place orders are issued fairly frequently due to various incidents from gas leaks to industrial accidents.

Though I wont mention the particular business I am speaking of, I am paying particular attention to them for a reason. They had just relocated to a new building, that is located right next to an electrical sub-station which if it were to catch fire releases a very large amount of toxic fumes and smoke. These types of fires also burn extremely hot, and have the potential to place nearby structures in danger.

Just to provide you with some example of these types of fires, see the videos below.

Florida Sub-Station Fire & Explosion

March 2009 Ottawa Sub-Station Fire

Warning: The Video below contains Expletives

San Leandro Sub-Station Fire

 These are not the only situations for which a shelter in place can be called, but as I stated, the fumes and smoke from these fires are extremely toxic, and generally contain PCB's. However, transformer fires are fairly a common event and as you can see from these videos, people are unfamiliar with the potential dangers, even having their kids outside to watch.

What does this have to do with business? Well, businesses have a duty to act appropriately to safe guard both employees, and guests or visitors at the business site and knowing what to do when a shelter In Place order is given.

There is a lot more to a Shelter In Place program, but here are some basics to get you started:

• Close the business, no one should come in or out.

• Choose an interior room, preferably with no windows, hopefully with a telephone.

• Ensure and provide for the safety of visitors, and clients, someone will need to direct them what to do

• Close and lock ALL outside windows and doors If you can close all blinds and curtains

• Turn off all Fans, heating, and air conditioning systems

• If possible, have people call their emergency contacts to let them know where they are and that they are safe

• Get the names of all the people in the room or onsite

• Seal off the room using the plastic sheeting and duct tape, cover all doors, windows, and vents

• Listen to the radio for instructions, and for when the shelter in place advisory is over

 If you have questions or concerns about Sheltering In Place feel free to Contact me and I will be glade to help you get this done the right way at your business. 

Should You Invest In Gold, Silver or Other Precious Metals? A Preppers Perspective

Unless you have been living under a rock (which may not be a bad idea) you know that we are in the middle of a financial crisis, that looks like it will continue for some time, and may even worsen. Many people have been turning to Gold, Silver and other precious metals, as well as some other commodities as an investment to hedge against inflation

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Think Your Business Data Backup Is Adequate? Not So Fast, Read This First Before You Answer

I have had some interesting experiences in my time of either working for, or consulting with businesses, especially in the area concerning data backups and data recovery. Most businesses when asked can tell you that they have adequate backups in place, and a good portion of them do. However, when you really drill down into what their plans are, or how they are actually backing up their data things get interesting very quickly.

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Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD’s) Found in United States, Specifically in San Diego – Must See Interview

Recently, 10News - KGTV of San Diego conducted an interview with Al Hallor the Assistant Port Director with U.S. Customs and Border Protection with the Port of San Diego. The interview, which you can see below is quite interesting, and suggests that WMD's of either chemical or Biological in nature have been discovered somewhere in San Diego in the last year. During the interview they are called Weapons of Mass Effect.

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