Small, medium-sized New York businesses ill-prepared for disaster, study says

A recent study performed by the American Red Cross in Greater New York and New York University's Center for Catastrophe Preparedness and Response has revealed that New York City's small and medium size companies are poorly prepared for emergencies and disasters.

The survey results showed that only one in four businesses have a formal plan ready. Additionally, only four in 10 businesses have reported providing any preparedness information or training to their employees at all.

More than half of the businesses surveyed said that they are not prepared for terrorism either.

Businesses that did not take any steps to prepare cited obstacles such as not having enough information, lack of finances, not having a large enough staff and minimal expertise.

Those businesses that did take steps to prepare did so for reasons including risk to employees or business operations, legal liability, risk to business reputation and regulatory and insurance requirements.

More in-depth survey results and a complete report can be found at www.nyredcross.org/research or www.nyu.edu/ccpr.