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In addition to tragic human suffering, hurricanes pose a real threat to the economy. Unless business owners know what to do to return to normalcy, residents may not feel the storm’s true impact until months later, as they face still-closed businesses and unexpected price inflation. Mental health professionals also recommend a quick reopening of businesses to bring a sense of normalcy to affected areas. Businesses can help by being prepared for emergencies, and returning to “business as normal” as quickly as possible.

Unfortunately, small businesses are usually very poorly equipped to handle major disasters such as fires, floods, and storms. Small business owners often have enough on their plate without having to worry about planning for a natural or man-made disaster. According to a recent poll by the National Federation of Independent Business, almost forty percent of small businesses experience disaster at some time; ten percent man-made and thirty percent natural. But what steps can you, a small business owner, take to ensure a man-made or natural disaster doesn’t mean the end of your business? The answer to that is simple; develop a disaster recovery plan, and develop it now.

If you’re like most small business owners, your company is your livelihood. Protecting your organization and all that it takes to run it is critical. Oftentimes, much effort goes into crisis prevention, but little is done to plan for recovery. Below, you’ll find useful tips and information to help your small business not only prevent but recover from one of the most common and devastating disasters a company can suffer: fire.

It is the third year FEMA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are leading a campaign during National Severe Weather Preparedness Week, challenging individuals and businesses to improve the way they prepare and respond to severe weather. This year’s theme is Be a Force of Nature: Take the Next Step.

While a hurricane’s winds and rain are detrimental enough, the storm surge that follows generally causes most of the flood damage. A storm surge is created when a hurricane can be worse than the force of 120-mile-per-hour winds. This is bad news for the 4.2 million residents along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts and the $1.1 trillion of property that is vulnerable to severe flood damage. As if that isn’t bad enough, over half of the U.S.’s economic productivity is along coastal zones. While floods are unpredictable and unpreventable, you can prepare now to reduce resulting damage drives water ashore, and the impact of the waves in the future.