Page 2 of 2
Arlin Sorensen, CEO of HTG Peer Groups, an organization of VARs that has a program called Hands That Give in which VARs help other VARs recover in times of need said he's got volunteer resources ready to help VARs impacted by Hurricane Sandy.
"We sent out and e-mail alert to everybody. We're standing by," Sorensen said. Hands That Give has about 170 member companies in the program, he added. "The majority are not on the East Coast, so we have a big pool of people to draw on."
HTG's e-mail included a Red Cross disaster preparedness document and offered tips on how to prepare for the hurricane for VARs to pass along to customers and do themselves, including:
- Write down critical cell and landline numbers.
- Use text messages instead of voice calls when possible to use less battery on your phone.
- Back up critical data onto external hard drives or online and evacuate critical equipment or seal it in garbage bags to protect against water damage.
- And lastly, use common sense.
"Evacuate if your local government issues an order, don't drive through flooded streets, stay away from downed wires. If you stay calm, your family will too," Sorensen wrote in the email.
Sorensen hasn't received any calls for help as of Monday morning. "I assume in the next 24 hours things will liven up out there," he said.
Mike Semel, president of Semel Consulting, a Las Vegas-based company that specializes in helping VARs with disaster recovery and business continuity, said at this point any VARs in Sandy's path just need to "settle down, settle in and survive."
Semel is riding out the storm in Elmira, N.Y., where he has stockpiled 30 gallons of gas for his generator and 10 gallons of water for he and his wife.
"We're going to see wires down, flooding. Avoid driving at all. In fact, it could be illegal to drive in your area," Semel said. "Right now, the message is there's no client, no contract, no business, that's worth anybody taking a risk."
PUBLISHED OCT. 29, 2012
<< Previous
|
1
|
2
