Issue link: http://psai.uberflip.com/i/1162806
W EEKLY EDITION SEPTEMBER 4, 2019 Prepa ri ng for Hurr ica ne Dori a n: PSAI a nd Me mb er s W o rk t o ge th e r to Co u n te r Mi sin fo rm at io n By Karleen Kos, PSAI Executive Director • Check out your data backup procedures . You may think you have all this covered, but what if your office floods, burns down or blows away? Are you backing up to the cloud or some other off - site location? How quickly could you recover your data if you had to start from scratch? What would you do in the meantime? • Communicate with your customers . Send an email to customers, make phone calls, or talk to them personally about what to expect from your company when a storm is forecast for the area. Especially teac h customers how they can help secure the portable restroom equipment on their property. Make sure to tell your customers what they need to know and do that will save your equipment and avoid dangerous situations. Be Ready to Roll After the Storm. When Dor ian – or whatever storm plagues you – is over, you'll want to be able to conduct business as quickly and completely as conditions allow. You may be able to pick up extra contracts as part of the emergency response and rebuilding efforts as well. So it's im portant that you can hit the ground running, and that can happen if you take care of some things before the storm. • Check all your equipment in light of expected conditions and make adjustments or upgrades as needed. • Ensure you have enough consumable suppl ies on hand. You may need more than usual, and supplies may be interrupted for a while after the storm. • If feasible, consider pre - loading your trucks for fast dispatch. • Make sure all truck gas tanks are full and you have a source for gas that is not depend ent on commercial suppliers. When electricity and the internet are down, you won't be able to get gas at a gas station, even if it has a generator , because their payment systems rely on the internet. • Identify and confirm a water source that is not dependen t on electricity. • Anticipate disposal site issues and have a plan for disposing or temporarily storing waste until your provider can operate again. • Have ready cash. Your crew may not be able to use credit cards to purchase food or other supplies during a t ime when utilities are down. P AGE 10 CONTINUED ON PAGE 11