Supporting Operations When a Hurricane Occurs During a Pandemic

BDO has released a risk-manager focused report discussing what considerations have to be kept in mind during a hurricane season when a pandemic is already occurring and actions to take to help prepare an organization for this threat. The current threat environment is an unusual one and the document lists four new variables that crisis teams will encounter compared to previous hurricane events: longer term storm impacts, difficulty supporting employees, remote work during a crisis, and already stressed supply chains. When confronting these issues, the authors recommend frontloading preparedness activity with both staff and crisis response teams. Crisis response teams will need to assess current plans and test how they would operate under pandemic conditions. Furthermore, due to the predicted increase in financial consequences from natural disasters this year, insurance and loan policies should be reviewed.