@-a-glance
Extreme Weather
and Your Business
Unusual Weather: America @-a-glance
Extreme weather events are on the rise and often occurring in some pretty strange places, catching small business owners off-guard and often unprotected.
Largest Single System Tornado Outbreak Ever Recorded
Over a four-day period, 358 tornadoes strike in the Southeast, particularly Alabama. A record 205 tornadoes touch down in a single day, resulting in 348 fatalities and widespread damage.
Source: "The Historic Tornadoes of April 2011," U.S. Department of Commerce, December 2011
Historic Hail in Amarillo, Texas
A Texas Panhandle storm dumped several feet of nickel-sized hail, stranded motorists in muddy hail drifts stacked chest high in some places, and closed a highway for several hours.
Source: "4 feet of hail? Massive Hail Storm Hits Texas Panhandle," Christian Science Monitor, April 13, 2012
Historic Dust Storm Turns Sunny Arizona Sky Black
An historic dust storm or "haboob" turns day to night in Phoenix and creates a wall of sand and dust 50 miles wide and over 8,000 feet high, taking visibility down to 0. 10,000 are left without power.
Source: "Phoenix Dust Storm: Arizona Hit With Monstrous Haboob," Huffington Post, July 6, 2011
Unusually Strong Winds Rattle Southern California
Every fall, the Santa Ana winds blow in off the desert and arrive in Southern California. But the damage was far more serious this season, when the winds reached speeds as high as 97 mph, causing power outages, evacuations and badly damaged buildings.
Source: "Santa Ana Winds, Unusually Strong, Rattle More Than Nerves in California," New York Times, December 1, 2011
Wildfires Spread Across More than 1 Million Acres
57 large wildfires burned across 15 states. Colorado was hit especially hard with the Waldo Canyon Fire, the most destructive wildfire in the state's record. About 165,000 acres and 700 homes are burned by Coloradan wildfires.
Source: State of the Climate Wildfires, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Climatic Data Center, June 2012
Floodwaters Top Record Highs in North Dakota
Swollen by more than a month of record rains in Saskatchewan, the Souris River tops its all time record high set in 1881. Floodwaters pour into Minot, North Dakota's fourth largest city, forcing more that 12,000 to evacuate.
Source: "Sirens Sound in Minot as Waters Rise," Associated Press, June 22, 2011
Violent Thunderstorms Leave 700-mile Trail of Destruction
A derecho of violent thunderstorms strikes the Midwest and mid-Atlantic states following a record-breaking heatwave. It is one of the most destructive and deadly fast-moving thunderstorm complexes ever in North America, leaving millions without power.
Source: State of the Climate Wildfires, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Climatic Data Center, June 2012
Northeast Battered by First Tropical Storm in 20 Years
Hurricane Irene reaches as far north as the Northeast, the first tropical storm to make landfall there in 20 years. New York City and New England have extensive flooding in low-lying areas. Over 3 million are left without power.
Source: State of the Climate Wildfires, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Climatic Data Center, August 2011
Great Mississippi River Flood
Record rainfall and snowmelt cause one of the most damaging floods across extensive areas of Kentucky, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Illinois, Missouri, and Tennessee, costing billions of dollars in damage.
Source: State of the Climate Wildfires, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Climatic Data Center, May 2011
Record Rains Cause Flooding in Nashville
Over 19 inches of rain fall in two days. The Cumberland River crests at 52 feet, a level not seen in Nashville since 1937, causing over $2 billion in property damage.
Source: "National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration's National Weather Service Releases Report on May 2010 Nashville Flood," January 12, 2011
White Halloween Across the Northeast
A freak fall snowstorm produces record snowfall across the Northeast. In Connecticut, leaf-covered trees unable to bear the weight of the snow fall into power lines, causing over 3 million people to lose power in a blackout that lasts over a week.
Source: State of the Climate Wildfires, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Climatic Data Center, October 2011
Rare Snowstorm Hits Arizona and New Mexico
A late winter snowstorm brought high winds and more than a foot of snow to parts of Arizona and New Mexico, causing power outages, school and road closings, and warnings of a potential avalanche.
Source: "Rare Storm Hits Flagstaff and New Mexico," International Business Times, March 19, 2012
Superstorm Sandy Leaves a Trail of Destruction
The largest tropical storm on record leaves flooding, fire and even snow in its wake and millions without power from Maine to the Carolinas.
A Major Winter Snowstorm Strikes the Pacific Northwest
Four to six inches of snow fall in Seattle, equaling the city's average snowfall over an entire season. Over a foot falls in nearby Olympia.
Source: "Seattle Faces Unusually Strong Snowfall," Reuters, January 18, 2012
Worst Drought and Wildfire Season in Texas History
Exceptional drought and strong winds fueled the Texas wildfires, burning about 77 square miles or 3.9 million acres — double the previous record.
Source: "The Impact of 2011 Drought and Beyond," Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, February 2012
To view details for an extreme weather event, click an icon on the map.
Businesses Going Dark
40% of small businesses impacted by extreme weather events close permanently after experiencing long term power outages which can cause physical losses in perishable inventory and lost revenue.
Source: Protecting Your Businesses, last updated 3/1/2013
Extreme Weather is on the Rise
Extreme weather events are on the rise in the United States.
Source: © 2012 Münchener Rückversicherungs-Gesellschaft, Geo Risks Research, NatCatSERVICE. As of January 2012.
Have a Plan
57% of small businesses have no disaster recovery plan (Symantec's 2011 SMB Disaster Preparedness Survey)
Source: Symantec's 2011 SMB Disaster Preparedness Survey
Revenue Lost
$3000 per day – The median cost of downtime from a small business affected by an extreme weather event.
Source: Symantec's 2011 SMB Disaster Preparedness Survey
Prepare & Maintain
According to the 2009 Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity Survey from Charlotte, N.C.-based Agility: 90% percent of smaller companies (less than 100 employees) surveyed spend
less than one day per month preparing and maintaining their continuity plans.
Source: Agility's 2009 Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity Survey
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