When a hurricane approaches, preparation is key for IT equipment. During a hurricane there is risk of water and electrical damage. Preparing backups before a hurricane is expected to hit should be your priority. It is common practice to have at least three backup systems. At Integrity we keep two backups onsite, another is stored at another local location with our IT company, and we also have a final backup stored with a cloud-based solution if all else fails.
It is important to remember in the event of a catastrophic situation there can be major down time in IT infrastructure. It is important to remember to have paper copies of important information. This information can include things like: staff phone listing with emergency contacts, local police emergency and non-emergency numbers, local fire department numbers, security system contact information, phone and internet vendor numbers, and important login information to portals required for normal business operation.
Once all of this is taken care of it is important to make sure all physical hardware is secured. If you are on the first floor you should disconnect all computers and phones and make sure to put them higher than ground level. It is a good idea to cover computers and monitors to prevent water damage. Lastly it is a good idea to disconnect it equipment from all power sources and network sources. Although lightning is not particularly common during hurricanes issues coming from power loss can cause electrical surges damaging equipment.
Lastly but most importantly, it is important to remember IT equipment can be replaced, people cannot. It comes second to securing homes and families. It is not possible to fully predict the actual scope or path of a hurricane until it is only 12 – 24 hours out. It is crucial to have all the plans in place before you need them to ensure all preparations are completed efficiently.
Lastly but most importantly, it is important to remember IT equipment can be replaced, people cannot. It comes second to securing homes and families. It is crucial to have all the plans in place before you need them to ensure all preparations are completed efficiently and in time. Time is crucial, is not possible to fully predict the actual scope or path of a hurricane until it is only 12 – 24 hours out.
