Remembering 9/11
Today marks the 11th anniversary of one of the most horrific days in U.S. history: the terrorist attacks of Sep. 11, 2001. People throughout the U.S. remember 9/11 in much the same way as people remember the day that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. They know exactly where they were and what they doing when they heard about or witnessed what happened.
Those who had the day off or were running late for work that day were fortunate because their lives were spared. But this most horrific of disasters left them in limbo, wondering what to do. When we talk about disaster preparedness, terrorist attacks like the one on Sep. 11, 2001, are the furthest things from our minds.
Though it may sound callous, you must prepare for that possibility, too. Once you’ve recovered from the initial shock, you’ll have to put your disaster recovery plan into action. Your clients and vendors will want to know what’s going on. More important, they’ll want to know if everyone in your office is all right. If such is not the case, be honest but brief, and let them know when you expect to return to full operation. You must allow time to mourn lost lives and recover from the trauma of the event.
Recovering from any type of disaster is difficult, but recovering from something as awful as a terrorist attack could take more than a couple of days. Today is a good day to start thinking about what you and your team might do to recover as you pause to remember those who lost their lives both innocently and bravely on Sep. 11, 2001.