Clyde's Corner:

Double Whammy!

Living in the Northeast (specifically the north shore of Long Island) has so many wonderful benefits: beautiful coastline, rolling hills, majestic trees, great restaurants, proximity to New York City, and good public services and utilities. All of these have been stressed in the last 12 days. Sandy paid us a visit first, and then on Wednesday night, we had our first snow of the season. And it wasn't the pretty, white, fluffy stuff.

You may recall that several weeks ago I wrote about the pristine beaches of Long Island's south shore where I walk to sooth my soul. The tranquility and beauty of which I spoke faced off with the brutal reality that nature can be very cruel and unkind. Before the storm, the gentle waves lapping on the shore were comforting and hypnotizing. During the storm, waves came ashore with a brutality and vengeance not experienced here in a very long time. The winds holding steady at 60 mph and gusting to 95 tore through the calm and created chaos and destruction. The water that we so cherish in these parts turned her back on us, and profoundly changed our lives for what could be years to come.

In my community the water advanced from the north and east with waves of greater than 10 feet in the normally calm Long Island Sound. With a full moon and high tide the classic "storm surge" pushed mercilessly towards corners of our towns and beaches that it had never visited. From the south, ocean waves registered 30 feet at times and came ashore with violence and determination, taking homes, boats, businesses, and power lines with equal anger and force. The mighty oaks, cherry, hickory, locust, pine, birch, and maple were stressed beyond their capability to remain upright and took down power lines, Internet, phone, cell towers, and buildings. The howling winds in the dead of night were scary, and we assumed the outcome would not be good.   Having already lost power in the afternoon, we went to bed that night not knowing what to expect in the morning. Being so powerless and so without knowledge is a very uncomfortable feeling for a life-long BCP guy. The house moaned and groaned as the wind was unrelenting. Screens vibrated violently, the gutters screeched and they fought to hold on as the roof shingles tore free in some places.

The water became the enemy, the wind our foe. Trees and wires were down everywhere you looked, and power outages extended to 90% of the LIPA power customers on Long Island. The island was eerily quiet. The hum of an occasional generator broke the silence, but no planes flying overhead, no cars whizzing past, no people out walking...just wind and rain. We were without power for six days, but the unfortunate reality is that some folks will be without power right up until Thanksgiving. Unimaginable. Unbelievable. Unreal. Unfair. Unfortunate. Devastating.

The public/private sector collaboration that we preach in our BCP doctrines, was very much needed, but lacking to a considerable degree. Were we all on the same page (power, cable, phone, town, county, state, federal)? I'm just not sure. The fact is that the power company is still striving (with considerable welcomed outside assistance) to bring power back to very large communities here. I don't think there will be glowing reports about the response and outcome in the post outage reviews. Once again, those of us in this profession are left shaking our heads and wondering what else we should we be planning for.

This storm provides us with valuable lessons learned. On Long Island and in New Jersey, our way of life has been changed. Our beach communities decimated. Our boardwalks and beaches destroyed. Our homes damaged beyond repair or simply washed away. Not unlike Katina or the tsunami in Japan, lives were lost, homes and businesses destroyed, and planning and preparedness questioned. We know we can't think of everything, but hurricanes and storms like Sandy do make appointments. We know 10 days out that something really bad is on the way. We can and should do better. Gasoline in very short supply for generators was our first "Aha!" moment. Or maybe buying a generator was the first. Perhaps it was having plenty of food, batteries, flashlights, and ice. Home and family preparedness plans became of paramount importance. We always say disasters are personal before they are professional. Caring for our loved ones comes before making sure the server is up and running. Make sure you have a good life safety BCP for your house and family!

We now know that so many suffered in these storms, experiencing direct hits from the powerful winds and rising tides. If it is in your heart, and you are able, please donate your time, energy or money to a good cause of your choice to help those impacted. This is a bad one. This is one for the record books. Help where you can, and if it is your way to say a prayer or two, please do.

It is with a heavy heart that I write Clyde's Corner this week. I recognize that we play such a small part in this universe, but every little act of kindness helps. And your desire to help where you can will be very much appreciated by those who lost so much and face so many challenges in the months ahead. To those of you impacted, my heartfelt hope for your speedy and complete recovery.

All the best,

Clyde Berger

cberger@driif.org 

Director of Volunteerism and Vice President 

The Politics of Disaster: Prevention Doesn't Pay? 

WSJ Profiles Small Businesses Post-Sandy 

Cooperation, Kindness the Norm?

People Are Good at Heart!!

 

Researchers and post-Sandy people watchers are coming to the same conclusion: people tend toward cooperation and kindness. A photo posted on Facebook by George Takei substantiates the claim. The photo shows power cords draped over a fence with the message: "We have power. Please feel free to charge your phone!"

"Although the cold logic of self-interest is seductive, our first impulse is to cooperate," Harvard researchers concluded (read the article here). And be sure to check out this fascinating Slate article about altruism and cooperation exhibited by Sandy survivors, which states:

"Researchers in disaster science have again and again debunked the idea that catastrophe causes social breakdown and releases the ugliest parts of human nature. Research from the past several decades demonstrates, as one report put it, 'that panic is not a problem in disasters; that rather than helplessly awaiting outside aid, members of the public behave proactively and prosocially to assist one another; that community residents themselves perform many critical disaster tasks, such as searching for and rescuing victims; and that both social cohesiveness and informal mechanisms of social control increase during disasters, resulting in a lower incidence of deviant behavior.' People become their best selves when crisis strikes."

Audit Course:

Learn By Doing in This Hands-On Program! 

 

Did you know that DRI International also offers a course in BCM audit? That's right. Our courses can prepare you to audit the conformity of a disaster recovery, business continuity, and emergency management program. This skill set is invaluable for aspiring auditors, industry consultants, and business continuity professionals who'd like to ensure that their programs can hold up under the audit microscope. And the training is delivered in an exciting learn-by-doing, hands-on format that is as unique as it is effective.

First you'll choose a standard. Different industries and different areas of the world use different standards. We have a course which uses the NFPA 1600 "Standard on Disaster/Emergency Management and Business Continuity Programs," one which uses the Singapore Standard, and one based on British Standard 25999. In addition to the body of knowledge defined by the standard you select, the training program includes two modules on auditing. The first module identifies auditing standards and guidance, defines the phases of engagement, engagement planning, performance of the audit, and communicating results.

During each stage of the training program, students use a hypothetical case study company to gather information and make determinations about whether the program they are auditing conforms to the standard. Findings are compiled during each exercise. The final module of the training program covers reporting findings and recommendations. The final exercise is the compilation of findings and the presentation of recommendations to the class.

Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to audit a business continuity program based on the selected standard. Successful completion of the BCLE-AUD course and passing the essay exam with a 74% or higher earns students a Certificate in Business Continuity Planning for Auditors from DRI International, as well as 32 Continuing Education Activity Points (CEAPs).

Want to Win a Galaxy Tablet? 

 

Register for DRI2013 now and your name will be entered into a prize drawing for a new Galaxy Tablet!  You know you want to go to our second annual conference, to be held June 4-7 in Philadelphia, PA.  So, why not register early to wrap up your travel plans and take a chance on winning a cool new tablet?

Here are the rules: Registration and payment must be received by December 1, 2012. DRI employees, board members, commission members, and DRI2013 conference presenters are not eligible to win. Drawing will take place on December 15, 2012, and the winner will be notified at that time.

Register today at  www.DRIconference.com!