Emergencies can happen at any time and may affect staff, customers, or business operations. Being prepared helps your business respond, reduce disruption, and recover quickly.
Emergencies include natural disasters and other serious incidents that impact public safety or normal business activity. Clear, practical plans ensure you know what to do if something unexpected occurs.
1. Know your risk
Identify the emergencies and disasters that might affect your business. If you’re new to the area, it’s important to understand how you might be at risk, so you know what to expect and how to prepare.
Risks that can affect businesses include natural disasters such as storms and heatwaves, as well as other emergency incidents that may impact public safety, access to your premises, staff, supply chains or business operations, including structural fire or infrastructure failure.
2. Plan now for what you will do
Sit down with your staff and create an emergency action plan so everyone knows what to do and who is responsible if an emergency or disaster occurs.
Your plan should include how to keep people safe, when to evacuate or shelter in place, how you will communicate during an incident, and how your business will recover afterwards. Planning ahead can help protect lives and the future of your business.
3. Get your business ready
There are practical and easy actions you can take now to prepare your business and support continuity during and after an emergency.
This may include developing an emergency and business continuity plan (BCP). Developing a BCP can be a useful prompt for practical steps such as, backing up data, securing equipment and stock, maintaining your premises, planning for financial impacts and recovery as well as identifying opportunities that may emerge following a shock event.
4. Be aware
If an emergency or disaster does occur, knowing where to find reliable, up-to-date information can help you respond quickly and safely.
Connect with trusted information sources to receive alerts and advice:
- Northern Beaches Council’s Emergency Dashboard
- NSW Rural Fire Service
- NSW State Emergency Service
- Fire and Rescue NSW
- NSW Police
- Bureau of Meteorology (BOM)
- NSW Health
5. Look out for each other
The safety and wellbeing of staff and customers should always come first. Make sure everyone understands emergency procedures, knows how to get help, and feels supported during and after an emergency.
Looking out for each other helps build a safer, more resilient business and community.
