August 1, 2008—The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recently announced that it is partnering with the Safe America Foundation in the development of a new initiative, called QuakeSmart, designed to encourage business leaders and owners in areas of the United States that are at risk from earthquakes to take actions that will mitigate damage to their businesses, provide greater safety for customers and employees, and speed recovery in the event of an earthquake.
FEMA is partnering with the Safe America Foundation, an Atlanta-based nonprofit that focuses on safety and disaster preparedness, to lead the QuakeSmart effort. The goal of QuakeSmart is to build awareness within the business community of the risk and to educate businesses, particularly small and emerging businesses, on the relatively simple things they can do to reduce or mitigate the impact of earthquakes, and support community preparedness.
The effort will begin with a series of QuakeSmart Community Forums in several cities in the Midwest and on the West Coast. The first four forums will be conducted in Monterey, Calif.; Reno, Nev.; Evansville, Ind.; and Cape Girardeau, Mo. All four events will be held in September to coincide with National Preparedness Month.
The forums, conducted during a free weekday luncheon, will feature leading national experts who will address topics such as Earthquake Vulnerability-Protecting Your Investment, What a Small Business Can Do NOW, Mitigation Resources for Business, Business Interruption Planning, and more.
The benefits to businesses that participate in the program and actively work to mitigate are substantial. Not only can business owners protect their and others’ investments and recover more quickly from a disaster, they also can save on insurance premiums, substantially reduce the risk of injury or death for themselves, their employees and customers, and help create a more resilient community in which future investment is more attractive.
For more information visit FEMA Web site and Safe America Web site.
