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The past two months have been a series of unfortunate natural disasters that have wreaked havoc on North America. From fires and earthquakes to three hurricanes making landfall less than a month apart, there has been extreme physical damage to business properties.

Amid relentless storms and rising water levels after five years of drought conditions, the levee along the San Joaquin River just south of Manteca, California, became damaged in late February 2017. About 500 residents in the rural area were told to immediately evacuate. There was no time for flood damage preparation. Luckily, crews were able to fix the levee before it experienced a catastrophic failure.

The success of your business continuity efforts after a hurricane relies on the effectiveness of your disaster preparedness plans. Because tropical storms are unpredictable and can cause hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage, several agencies and organizations offer invaluable information and guidance regarding how to prepare, stay safe and recover.

When Hurricane Sandy plowed into the Northeast United States in 2012, estimated business losses totaled more than $25 billion. In New Jersey alone, 19,000 small businesses suffered losses of $250,000 or more with estimated losses at $8.3 billion, about 1 percent of the gross state product. The event served as a hard lesson in the unpredictability and danger of storms.

As the most common natural disaster in the United States, floods occur all year round. Some areas of the country experience more flooding during the spring because the warmer weather and rains melt winter snow rapidly. States affected by hurricanes and tropical storms are vulnerable to floods during the summer.