Hurricane Season: Protecting Your Retail Business

Between November and June, hurricane season is active in the Pacific. For retail businesses, this is never something they get used to. There’s always the threat of having everything you’ve ever worked for, literally being lifted and transported away. There’s the added danger of projectile damage, as hurricane winds pick up bits of debris and hurl them through the air at breakneck speeds. If something as light as a door mirror was to be launched at your business by tremendous winds, it could punch a hole through your windows and shelves with great ease. So what do you do, just board everything up and leave? Of course not, you have to put these following kinds of measures in place.

Take away the records

If you have any kinds of important records at your retail business, they need to be taken home. Many stores will have a back office that is used to keep financial and sales reports safe. However, even if you have these files in a safe, they need to be taken out and brought to a safer place. There’s no knowing what could happen if just one of the many hundreds of hurricanes, sweeps towards you. You don’t want to lose these vitally important records which keep your business on the straight and narrow.

Prepare for a downpour

With hurricanes at this time of year, a great deal of rainfall. This could mean that your business is presented with multiple water hazards at once. Make sure that you have prepared your awning for the additional weight. If you need to fit extra support struts that you need to do so now before it’s too late. Keep a broom close by your awning so you can regularly push the water off your awning if a pool has developed. You don’t want this pool bursting through your awning and falling on top of a passerby who could then sue you if they are injured. In case of a flash street flood, you need to have sandbags at the ready so you can at least prevent water from coming inside your business.

Back in action

Despite taking every precaution, it seems like it’s almost inevitable that your glass panels will get smashed in a fierce hurricane. The most flimsy part of your front is your door since it’s the only moving part. Don’t arrive to work one morning with your door bent and shattered, and stand around not knowing what to do. Call a commercial door repair service which has a 24-hour emergency callout policy, so you can get back in action as soon as possible. They can fix both entry doors, overhead and dock doors in case you have damage at the rear of your establishment.

Be brave and close

If the winds ever get too strong during open hours, you have to be brave and close to the store. Once you’re in the pathway of a hurricane, you only have seconds to act and by then it’s too late. If you have to, tell all customers to leave your store for their protection and put up all your defenses as quickly as you can.

Hurricane season can be lackadaisical but it could turn violent at any moment. Make sure you have these measures put in place so you’re never caught off guard.