Power Outage Business Continuity Plan: Tips for When Electricity & Internet Fail
Key Takeaways A 25-hour internet outage caused by a storm-driven fire in Patterson, NY, shows how quickly a single fiber cut can knock out business operations across an entire county Four decisions determine whether a business survives an outage: a redundant internet path, phones that keep working, immutable backups, and a written plan employees actually understand Public-safety radio in Putnam County stayed online during the July outage because it never depended on the same fiber connection that failed, a lesson worth applying to any business network Federal disaster data shows a large share of small businesses affected by disasters never reopen, making preparation far cheaper than recovery When the power goes out or the internet drops, a business does not get much warning. One moment the phones ring and the credit card terminal beeps along; the next, everything just stops. For small and medium-sized businesses across Orange County, Dutchess County, and Putnam County, that scenario st...