These rains coupled with the high prevalence of winds increases the likelihood of a flood. This problem is further compounded as the hurricane season is south Florida is predicated with high winds and rain. Floods can be troublesome for XYZ personnel as merchandise is damaged, the threat of electrical damage is increased, and the water damage to the facility can be substantial (United States Department of Commerce, 2006). In the event of a flood, for the following guidelines should be used in order to best assist our customers and personnel (Amanda, 2006). Executive in Charge

Review all possible exposures that could affect the building during a flood. Consider service interruptions and potential access problems. Call [HIDDEN] XYZR911.

Review flood duties with Life Safety Team members.

When floods are threatening the facility:

Set up a store command center with a designated phone and assign a person to manage the store command center. This will be used as the main communication center for your store to report and receive pertinent information regarding any emergency procedures. All information must subsequently from in and out of the store command center to prevent conflicting information from being released.

Loss prevention or the any member of the store executive team must call [HIDDEN] XYZR911 to initiate any form of emergency communications or notifications.

Designate a person to monitor flood conditions in the area. They should be in contact with the Office of Emergency Services for the most recent and accurate prediction of river levels and crests. When applicable utilize NOAA weather/all hazard radio to monitor conditions (Bratkovich, 2003).

Use sandbags around possible entry points to protect valuable equipment

Relocate high vale stock, electronic equipment, and critical items to safe areas

Ensure that roof and floor drains remain clear of debris or merchandise

Close any manual valves to prevent backflow through floor drains or plumbing features, if possible. Also consider sealing drains altogether.

Shut off electricity and gas to prevent short circuiting of electrical equipment and rupturing of gas lines. Maintain supplies needed for an electric or diesel fire pump (Jackson, 2010).

After the Flood has resided

Do not step into any form of standing water until it is checked for electrical equipment

Eliminate all unnecessary open flames or heat sources, including smoking

Continue to monitor flood conditions in the surrounding area. This is important as new information may require further action on the part of the executive in charge.

Distribute the damage inspection checklist to allow applicable personnel. This is to insure all merchandise that is salvageable can be recovered in working condition.

Clean and dry equipment and salvage stock, starting with the most vital items first.

Remove standing water,...

If an outside restoration and/or cleaning company is needed, contact the regional director of facilities for assistance.
If damage has occurred, within 48 hours, the executive in charge must notify risk management of any merchandise loss or damage by completing the First Notice Report. This pictures and report must then be emailed to -- .

Guidelines to test the above scenarios

To verify that the above recovery recommendations are complete and through, the management team must periodically test each plan. By testing each plan, better recommendations can subsequently be made to enhance the overall performance of the recovery. The best method in which to test the above scenarios is through the use of mock trials. These trials are thorough simulations of the actual recovery plan. Each member of the executive team should understand their roles and responsibilities in regards to the mock trials. The mock trials for each scenario should be conducted once a month to ensure all personnel are updated on all the above procedures. Once the mock trial is completed a short examination reinforcing the roles and responsibilities of personnel should be administered. Those who fail this assessment must redo the entire mock trial training. This training and testing is especially important for power outages which can occur at any time throughout the business day (Burgos, 2011). By testing using the mock trial method, associates will be better equipped to handle random emergencies that are hard to identify in advance of their occurrence.

References

1) Amanda Ripley. "Floods, Tornadoes, Hurricanes, Wildfires, Earthquakes... Why We Don't Prepare. "Time. August 28, 2006.

2) Burgos, Jr., Nestor P. (11/07/2010). "Iloilo power firms asked to explain brownouts." Philippine Daily Inquireir. http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/regions/view/20101107-301974/Iloilo-power-firms-asked-to-explain-brownouts. Retrieved 22 July 2012.

3) Dobson et al. Blackout Mitigation Assessment in Power Transmission Systems. System Sciences 2003. July 20, 2011

4) Petroski, Henry (2006). Levees and Other Raised Ground. 94. American Scientist. pp. 7 -- 18..

5) Jackson, Jeffrey. Paris Under Water: How the City of Light Survived the Great Flood of 1910 (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2010).

6) Fairley, Peter (2004-08). "The Unruly Power Grid." IEEE Spectrum (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers). http://www.cigre-c1-forum.org/Noticeboard_files/Unruly_grids.pdf. Retrieved 2012-07-22.

7) Stephen Bratkovich, Lisa Burban, et al., "Flooding and its Effects on Trees," USDA Forest Service, Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry, St. Paul, MN, September 1993, webpage: Na.fs.fed.us-flood-cover

8) United States Department of Commerce (June 2006). "Hurricane Katrina Service Assessment Report"(PDF). http://www.weather.gov/om/assessments/pdfs/Katrina.pdf. Retrieved 2006-07-14.