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Keeping An Eye On The Sky
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Copyright 2009 ProQuest Information and LearningAll Rights ReservedCopyright 2009 Mississippi Business Journal Mississippi Business Journal
October 26, 2009 Monday
SECTION: Pg. 4 Vol. 31 No. 43 ISSN: 0195-0002
ACC-NO: 12867
LENGTH: 824 words
HEADLINE: Keeping an eye on the sky
BYLINE: Northway, Wally
ABSTRACT
Thornton needs no reminding. Because the tornado struck at lunchtime, he was not sure exactly how many employees might be inside the rubble. FULL TEXT
It was a beautiful Friday in April 2008 when Percy Thornton stepped out of Southern States Utility Trailer in Richland to grab a bite to eat for lunch. He found it curious that the storm sirens were sounding. Gauging the sky and a few innocent looking clouds, he disregarded the warning and drove off.
It would be the last time he would see his facility intact.
"I got just a little piece down the road, and suddenly the sky got dark," said Thornton, president of Southern States. "I immediately turned around and headed back, scared. I wasn't gone but for a few minutes."
Almost as if it had designs for Southern States, a tornado that left adjacent businesses unscathed ripped into Southern States. Employees clung to posts to keep from being sucked out of the facility. A front desk worker had left her post just before the doors blew in, spraying the lobby with shards of glass. Thornton could only point to Providence that none of the company's workers who were in the building when the tornado hit were injured or killed.
The facility had served as Southern States headquarters for 26 years. After assessing the structural damages, the contractors and Thornton agreed that it was best just to demolish what was left of the complex and build a new facility. With that, the old Southern States was gone, almost without a trace.
The suddenness and unpredictability of tornadoes was the focus Oct. 21 when the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA), in cooperation with the National Weather Service, conducted a statewide tornado drill. Though aimed primarily at schools, MEMA encouraged businesses to participate in the drill, as well.
"We preach to families all the time about being prepared--having an evacuation plan, accounting for family members, etc.," said MEMA spokesperson Greg Flynn. "The same principles apply to businesses."
MEMA director Mike Womack hoped Mississippi businesses took advantage of the Oct. 21 drill. "We already lost one life this month when a tornado struck a mobile home park in Washington County Oct. 9," he said.
Thornton needs no reminding. Because the tornado struck at lunchtime, he was not sure exactly how many employees might be inside the rubble. This was complicated by downed power lines, which kept 15 of his 90 workers trapped inside and Thornton on the outside with nothing but his fears for counsel.
"We didn't have a good plan," Thornton said. "We do now."
In addition to an evacuation plan and knowing where everyone is, safe rooms are a key to survival. Two months before the April 2008 tornado in Richland, a potent storm system spawned numerous tornadoes in North Mississippi. The storm resulted in nearly 20 injuries, 300-plus homes damaged and 37 business affected, including 12 completely destroyed, across a 12-county area.
One of those businesses destroyed was the Caterpillar facility in Oxford. The workers sustained only minor injuries, which the company attributed largely to a couple of safe rooms where employees took refuge.
It would take Caterpillar approximately eight months before workers could return to the new plant that was dedicated in July 2008. Southern States was fortunate in that the tornado struck on a Friday and, with an outpouring of support, was able to relocate and set up in a temporary facility the following Monday without missing a day of operations. Still, Southern States did not hold the grand opening of its new, permanent facility until last August, 16 months after the tornado struck.
"I learned a lot, and one of the things I learned is you have to have good insurance coverage," Thornton said. "Make sure you're covered, and conduct annual reviews to ensure you remain covered. If we had not had good coverage, the business would not have made it. It would have died."
Bill Mathison, executive vice president of the insurance firm Fox-Everett Inc. in Ridgeland, agrees with Thornton. He said when it comes to coverage for natural disasters, there is no one-size-fits-all. Workers' comp would cover any injured workers. But, sound property coverage varies. Companies must look at the replacement cost of the business and all its contents.
Proper business interruption coverage can be harder to gauge. He said using a worst-case scenario is a good bet.
"The best way to determine adequate business interruption insurance is to look at the time a business would be down if it were totally destroyed and had to be rebuilt," he added.
Flynn urged Mississippi's business community to take advantage of MEMA's outreach and education programs. If requested, MEMA personnel will come to businesses to give tips and advice on surviving tornadoes and other natural disasters.
For more on MEMA's programs, as well as survival tips and other storm-preparedness information, visit the MEMA website at www.msema.org.
LOAD-DATE: November 6, 2009
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