New Disaster Preparedness Survey Highlights Need For More Comprehensive Planning

A recent survey of over 700 small and mid-sized businesses in the United States and Canada was conducted by Agility Recovery Solutions and Hughes Marketing Group to assess their disaster recovery and business continuity plans.

The survey results indicate that though more small and mid-sized businesses are taking preparedness steps, the plans are not comprehensive enough and many lack planning around basic infrastructure and people needs.

In addition many of these businesses spend little time updating and maintaining their plans. According to the survey:

Of the companies with a plan, 12%
have not updated it at all in the past 12 months. Another
33% have only provided general updates. This means that
45% of companies have a continuity plan in place, but have
not taken the appropriate steps to regularly update or test
its capabilities.

You can view the complete survey below:

2009 Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity Survey

Full Disclosure:

Disaster Preparedness Blog is not affiliated in any way with Agility Recovery Solutions. All information, and survey used with permission. Thanks to Agility Recovery Solutions for allowing us to use and pass along this information.

Forecasters Concerned Over Storms Forming Closer To United States

According to a news story today from ABC forecasters are concerned that a pattern may be developing in which Tropical Storms and Hurricanes are forming closer to the United States than in the usual place off the coast of Africa.

Citing this seasons first storm and Hurricane Humberto of 2007 they are worried that storms can be forming just two or three days from making land fall in the Unite States.

Called "Popup Storms" they tend to form off U.S. coast in the mid-Atlantic or Gulf regions, and as cited earlier in the case of hurricane Humberto, which went from a disturbance to a full formed category 1 hurricane in a single day.

This may or may not be true, but does give reason to be prepared ahead of time since some storms may give people less time to prepare and to evacuate.

With today being the start of the 2009 hurricane season, please take this opportunity to go out and purchase supplies and get prepared before a severe storm forms and threatens to make landfall.

Preparedness Issues and Disabilities

I am currently working on a series for the Disaster Preparedness Blog around preparedness issues and persons with disabilities and received an email this morning from a fellow blogger that did a brief post on the issue.

I feel it is important enough to include here and I'll have more on this topic in the next few weeks.

Excerpt From Security Debrief:

Attended by well over a hundred persons from the public and private sectors, the two-day workshop was an eye-opening experience that showed the challenges, frustrations and enormous gaps that still remain in this country when it comes to addressing the needs of persons with disabilities and special needs. I should know – I was in attendance at the workshop and left the two-day experience moved but extremely frustrated by what I learned.

However, if you are blind, hearing impaired or unable to physically move without some type of assistance, responding to an emergency is by no means easy and the notification systems described above offer little assistance. Your ability to react and respond to challenges is impeded not just by physical limitations but also by means well beyond your control.

Only the State of Texas provides a 24-7, 365 means (that is fully compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act) of notifying deaf and hearing impaired persons of approaching dangers.

For the entire story please see the posting here: An Unacceptable Reality to Address

Nuclear Attacks May Be More Likely In Coming Years and How To Survive One

The North Koreans have stated they are going to re-establish their nuclear capabilities. The Iranians are actively seeking nuclear material and believed to be seeking nuclear weapons. The Pakistanis already have what is believed to be 120-200 nuclear war heads.

In addition Pakistan has allegedly started making more weapons, though they publicly deny it, they also have the worst history as far as spreading nuclear knowledge and have assisted in nuclear proliferation in the past. Worse still Pakistan is being over-run by radical fundamentalists that would like nothing more than to destroy the United States and its allies.

Reportedly, though unconfirmed some of these radicals in Pakistan may already be in control of some of the nuclear sites within the country.

The likely hood of a nuclear attack inside the United States is increasing day by day, and I am not just talking about dirty bombs, but actual nuclear weapons.

Whether it is from a small suitcase type weapon, small nuclear device or bomb inside a truck, a missile launched from a ship close to our shore or even an ICBM launched by another state or group the threat is real.

Though I hope and pray I am incorrect this could happen in a time frame sooner than you may think, even in the next 3 to 10 years. In truth it may even happen tomorrow since I can't say when for certain, but you must know that the capability for it happening upon us.

The Missile Defense Program, which has seen much success has also taken a hit further reducing our capabilities to respond to several types of these attacks.

In addition we are completely unprepared right now for such an attack. Both from a national security stand point and in our private sector.

Think about it. If such an attack were to occur right now. Today. Would you even know what to do to survive? Most people do not know what to do.

Though there are a number of things you can do to prepare for such an attack, one thing is learning what you can do to better your chances for survival.

Below is a video from TED presented by Irwin Redlener on Surviving a Nuclear Attack. It is an excellent resource and a great place to start in learning what you can do to survive.

Hope you enjoy it.

Taliban May Already Hold Some Key Nuke Sites In Pakistan

According to a news story in the Times of India, the Taliban, Al-Qeada partnership and possibly other radical factions may already be in control of some of Pakistan's Nuclear sites.

The Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has allegedly told told the Obama administration the names of the sites in question and also warned the administration that "Pakistan is lost".

We have written several posts on the situation in Pakistan that you can view here:

Pakistan Near Collapse, Nukes Will Fall Into Terrorists Hands

Taliban Make Comeback Inside Pakistan, Shari'a Law Imposed

Taliban 60 Miles From Pakistan Capital, Collapse of Country May Be Imminent

The paper also reported and highlighted the disappointment of US experts at the administration and failure to take the threat seriously.

US experts have been greatly perturbed in recent days about what they say is Washington's misplaced confidence in, and lackadaisical approach towards, Pakistan's nuclear assets. The disquiet comes amid reports that Pakistan is ramping up its nuclear arsenal even as the rest of the world is scaling it down.

"It is quite disturbing that the administration is allowing Pakistan to quantitatively and qualitatively step up production of fissile material without as much as a public reproach," Robert Windrem, a visiting scholar with the Center for Law and Security in New York University and an expert on South Asia nuclear issues told ToI in an interview on Thursday. "Iraq and Iran did not get a similar concessions... and Pakistan has a much worse record of proliferation and security breaches than any other country in the world."